A man is attacked by a cabbie after trying to pay by credit card; the Clark St. shooting finally makes the report; and on my way to the precinct, I get sprayed with cement. It’s this week’s police blotter.
We have a dual-themed blotter this week, featuring stolen cars and stolen cell phones. We start with the cars.
It only took two months, but a woman finally reported her 2008 Ford Explorer stolen from the corner of Sands and Navy Sts. It has not been recovered.
On Friday, a man reported his 1987 BMW stolen from outside 57 Jay St. It has not been recovered, either.
A happier ending came when a woman neglected to report her Honda Civic stolen, but instead searched for the license plate number online and found the address it was at—through tickets she now owed. According to the report, “the vehicle had damage to the door and inside the vehicle is gone.” I guess maybe that isn’t such a happy ending after all.
Here are the cell phone thefts:
At Court and Schermerhorn on Monday evening, two juvenile thieves stole a cell phone out of the victim’s hand but were later apprehended. One was 11 years old and the other 16 years old.
At Bond and Bergen last Monday evening, an iPhone was snatched out of the victim’s hand.
At 350 Jay St. on Tuesday afternoon, a cell was snatched out of the victim’s hand. A 14-year-old suspect was arrested.
At 42 Wyckoff St. Thursday afternoon, an iPhone was snatched out of the victim’s hand.
At 327 Warren St. on Saturday afternoon, a woman was chatting on the phone when a thief came from behind and grabbed it. She gave chase, dropping her pocketbook in the process—which a second perp then snagged, taking $100 before throwing the bag under a car.
Now for the rest:
On Thursday afternoon at 191 Sands St., a 65-year-old woman sitting outside her apartment was punched in the face, which caused her to fall and hit her head on the ground. The victim was taken to Bellevue Hospital and a 42-year-old woman was arrested and charged with assault.
At Brooklyn Criminal Court last Wednesday, a court officer was removing the handcuffs from a female defendant when she suddenly spit in his face, punched him and repeatedly yelled, “Now you’re gonna have to take pills!”
On Friday night a man hailed a cab from midtown Manhattan and took it to Clark and Henry Sts. He then tried to pay by credit card, which so enraged the cabbie that he reached through the partition and tried to grab an iPod off the man’s neck. The man then fled the scene but the cabbie gave chase and tackled him to the ground; he was later arrested.
The flip side to this story occurred 3:30 Saturday morning, when an unlicensed limo driver picked up a group of thugs who paid him $12 to take them to Knickerbocker and Hart. An argument ensued during the ride, culminating in the gang taking back the money and pulling a knife on the driver. The driver ran out of the car to the corner of Willoughby and Jay, yelling for help. A group chased the gang into the Jay St. subway station, where they were arrested at the turnstiles. The knife was recovered in the garbage.
A woman was mugged at 420 Fulton St. last Friday afternoon after a thief literally ripped the bag off her arm. The victim didn’t see her attacker but did recognize a woman in the group.
At 305 Bergen St. early Monday morning, a perp entered an apartment through the terrace door while the resident was sleeping. He took an iPhone and backpack, though the backpack was recovered in the lobby.
Outside of Pretty Girl at 499 Fulton St. Thursday, a woman noticed her backpack was unzipped and her wallet stolen. In addition to the driver’s license and credit cards taken, the thief also charged $55.97 at the nearby Payless.
A former assistant manager entered Unique at 408 Fulton St. and stole $5,548 from the safe using another manager’s code. He was soon arrested.
The Clark St. shooting made it into this week’s blotter—when I asked an officer in crime analysis why it took so long, he answered “I dunno.” But the details are similar to what we’ve already heard—a 28-year-old man was shot twice on the left side, causing his left lung to collapse. Witnesses saw three men; after the shooting, two men then ran east on Clark, while the third walked west. They’re still at large, though two .40 caliber guns were recovered. The victim was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where they had to remove the collapsed lung.
Another shooting occurred at 111 Bridge St. at 3 a.m. Sunday. The victim, a 20-year-old man, was crossing the street when a black SUV pulled up and fired several rounds, striking him twice in the torso. He is expected to recover.
Finally, a man walked into the Muriel Guepin Gallery at 47 Bergen St. on Saturday and asked about the artwork. He must not have liked the answer, because he stole their Macbook and left. And that’s this week’s blotter.
