Is There a Stalker on Hicks Street in Brooklyn Heights?

A disturbing dispatch just arrived in the BHB Inbox.  Our tipster claims that there’s a mentally ill person who follows and stalks people on Hicks Street.  She alleges that the 84th Precinct is familiar with this individual (he was once  picked up running naked on Hicks Street) and that he supposedly robbed a neighbor at gunpoint last year.

The full email after the jump.

This morning my son and I were followed by a very unkempt person in the neighborhood who appears homeless, but is not. He is a mentally ill person who lives at [REDACTED] Hicks Street, the house with the kelly green trim paint. I have known of him for years because I had a friend who used to work next door.

We were on our way to school walking up Henry Street between Montague and Pierrepont when I saw him headed towards us. I stopped and let him pass, but then he turned around and came up behind us. I crossed the street and so did he, and at that point I turned around to a young man who was also behind us and told him I felt we were being followed and asked him to walk with us (he said yes). The scary individual turned and walked away.

He is very tall, african american, dressed all in black and he smells awful and from what I recall my friend saying he is picked up periodically by the police and/or Dept. of Health and either put in jail or a mental hospital, but is always released. I don’t know if he’s ever been physically violent with anyone, but he is certainly very menacing.

I was wondering if others had had any experiences with him. I would be very careful if you see him.

Share this Story:

, ,

  • heights mom

    Columbia St. Gal at least you know where your guy is most of the time. It seems our guy roams around both Cobble Hill and the Heights.

  • aliG

    I saw him about three days ago when I left my bldg to go to work. Looked like he was asking for money from a woman with a kid, maybe 7 years old. He seemed agitated and I was happy to see the woman and son get away from him rather quickly. This was @8am on the corner of Hicks and Remsen.

  • WillowtownCop

    Columbia St Gal- I’m actually with the Housing Bureau but I know
    who you’re talking about. The 76 has written him tickets, locked him up,
    called sanitation to get rid of his garbage, and he comes back every time
    with new garbage. If you talk to him, he’s actually lucid, which makes it
    difficult to commit him to a mental heath facility.

  • http://inklake.typepad.com Peter Kaufman

    How about a description of this person? Apart from this person being male, I have no idea from reading this what he looks like.

  • Columbia St Gal

    Willowtown Cop: Thanks. Unfortunately, everything you have said is the broken-record-soundtrack we’ve been suffering with since 2002222. Lucid enough to converse; Loco enough to throw furniture into traffic, strip, bey at the moon, fist fight with the neighbors, etc. Ugh!

  • heights mom

    Peter, he is a tall, solid (but not fat) african american male in his mid 40s probably. If he weren’t insane, he could be considered handsome. He is very unkempt and smells worse than the dirtiest homeless person you’ve ever encountered – it’s almost like a smell of rotting flesh. Most of the times I’ve seen him he has been dressed all in black and he has a very confident stride. He seeks out eye contact and stares. All I can say is you will probably know him if you see him. I haven’t seen him since Monday.

  • Ilikebrooklyn

    Why doesn’t someone take a picture of him w/their cell phone and post it so we know who to avoid and also identify where he hangs out.

  • No One of Consequence

    You can’t do that, as much as I’d like to know who this guy is, too, so I can keep an eye out for him, doing so would easily be labeled libel. We might already be borderline on that in this thread.

  • WillowtownCop

    One of the defenses to defamation is that the statement was true. He would also have to prove economic damages from the statement, not just emotional suffering. He wouldn’t have much of a case.

  • No One of Consequence

    But the request was “post [a picture] so we know who to avoid.”
    Not “post a picture of who was [allegedly] stalking this lady.”

    Hey, it’s after 2pm. I must be drunk by now! :)

  • X

    Besides the all black outfit, the rancid SMELL is unmistakable/unavoidable.

  • nabeguy

    By all descriptions, you don’t need your eyes to spot this guy, just your nose. Sounds like he’s got the 1000 yard stink.

  • Ilikebrooklyn

    Good points about the down side of posting a JPEG.

    How about if you take a picture and give it to the cops. Then — if enough people send the cops pictures of the same person they will be able to do something about what I heard others posters say feels icky. And I am not talking about his odor.

    They tell you to take pictures of sexual offenders on the subway — I don’t see the difference as far as libel. I’m not an attorney.

  • Heights mom

    The cops can’t do anything if he smells, and they can’t even really do anything if he gets up in your face or whatever until he actually strikes you or tries to harm you. Arresting him for “harrassment” will lead to him being taken to the hospital because he is clearly psychotic. They’ll stabilize him on meds (if they even do that) and release him with a prescription which he will not fill. I feel bad for the cops because until he actually hurts someone, they can’t do anything. Do you want to be the person he finally loses it with?

  • Heights Mom

    I keep seeing this guy and it’s really freaking me out. Anybody have any news on him?