By Emerson Clarridge

Three gunmen entered the off-campus house of seven University students on Sunday, forcing them to lie on their living room floor as they robbed the Uniondale home.

One of the men was armed with a machine gun, Nassau County police said.

“They held guns right to our faces a few times,” said junior A.J. Rizzo, one of the students who rents the house on Cooper Court.

Devon Maxwell, 22, of Uniondale, was charged with eight counts of first degree robbery. He was held without bail at an arraignment hearing at First District Court in Hempstead.

Police are close to arresting additional suspects in the case, Rizzo said. Police declined to comment on whether other arrests are imminent.

Rizzo said the robbery was connected to a dispute that began Saturday night at a party held at the University students’ home. One of the invited guests, an acquaintance that lived nearby, arrived with his cousin and a group of his friends.

A fight erupted at about 3 a.m. when one of the guests was accused of stealing a wallet and cell phone that belonged to one of the hosts.

“My roommate got into a scuffle with them,” Rizzo said. “They left right after, but came back and threw a brick through the window.”

All of the roommates were watching a basketball game on TV at 3:30 p.m. when they were ambushed, Rizzo said. As part of a ruse to get the roommates to open the door, the invited guest returned to the house to apologize. As he turned to leave, two armed men emerged from behind a tree and forced their way into the house.

One of the roommates was able to run out of the house during the confusion. A third suspect later entered the house. All wore black hoods and masks.

“The third guy watched us, made us lie flat on the ground in the living room with our heads down,” Rizzo said.

The robbers spent about 15-minutes stuffing duffel bags with computers, DVDs and jewelry. None of the stolen property has been recovered, police said.

“They cleaned house in all the rooms,” he said. His roommates’ textbooks and notes were also stolen.

The robbers considered taking a 42-inch plasma TV, but decided it would take too long to remove it from the wall.

“He was like ‘This would look good in my room, but if I wanted [it], I’d have to tie you all up,” Rizzo said.

Police ask anyone with information about the robbery to call them at 1-800-244-8477.

Three gunmen robbed the Uniondale home of seven University students Sunday afternoon. Nearly $20,000 worth of belongings were stolen. (Chronicle Staff Photo)

A brick and shattered glass are two of the few reminders of Sunday’s robbery. (Chronicle Staff Photo)