Category Archives: Crime

Multiple arrests for robberies last week

By Maria Rocha-Buschel  

Police arrested multiple people for alleged robberies in the neighborhood, including for a violent incident at the bus stop on First Avenue at East 14th Street last weekend.

Jason Vincente, 39, allegedly approached a woman in her 20s while she was waiting for the bus at the northeast corner of East 14th Street and First Avenue on Saturday, August 10 at 12:25 a.m.

Police said that Vincente attempted to grab the victim’s bag and when the victim refused to give it to him, he allegedly said, “Gimme your money,” and reportedly grabbed the victim by the shirt.

When she refused, police said that Vincente forced her into the wall of the bus stop enclosure, hitting her head against the glass multiple times, causing a bruise on her head and substantial pain. The victim was transported to Mount Sinai Beth Israel Hospital for treatment but no further information about her condition was available.

Continue reading →

Advertisements

Men wanted for sex crimes in Union Square station

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

Police are looking for two men for alleged sex crimes that took place in the Union Square station since the end of July.

A 25-year-old woman reported to police that she was leaving the station on Wednesday, July 31 at 4:40 p.m. when an unidentified man approached her from behind, grabbed her buttocks and then fled on foot, exiting the subway system. Surveillance video (posted above) showed the suspect at the station shortly after the time of the incident. The man is wanted for forcible touching.

Police said that a case of sexual abuse occurred in Union Square on Wednesday, August 7 around 4:20 a.m. after a 47-year-old woman fell asleep on a downtown Q train. The victim told police that she woke up when the suspect touched her right shoulder with his exposed genitals. When the victim confronted the suspect, he ran off the train at Union Square and fled the station to the street.

Continue reading →

Man busted for Gramercy package thefts

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

Police arrested a teen last week for multiple package thefts that took place earlier this summer in various buildings throughout Gramercy.

A Stuyvesant Town Public Safety Officer told police that he saw 19-year-old Luis Navarro Murillo via video surveillance entering 390 First Avenue in Peter Cooper Village around 4:30 a.m. on Tuesday, July 24, when he allegedly stole two packages from the building’s lobby.

After leaving that building, police said that about five minutes later, Navarro Murillo entered 350 First Avenue, also in Peter Cooper Village, and allegedly took one package from that lobby, then left the building.

Police later confirmed that Navarro Murillo also allegedly stole a package from the lobby of 39 Gramercy Park North on Tuesday, June 4 around 6:30 p.m.

Continue reading →

Doorman arrested for masturbating in resident’s apartment

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

Police arrested a doorman last month who allegedly broke into a resident’s apartment and masturbated while inside earlier this year.

Police said that 21-year-old Ronald Yagual, a doorman at a building on West 23rd Street in the Flatiron District, went inside the victim’s apartment without permission on Thursday, May 23 around 3 a.m.

According to the District Attorney’s office, Yagual masturbated and then removed water from the victim’s refrigerator without permission to do so. Yagual was arrested inside the 13th precinct on Wednesday, July 17 at 9:30 a.m.

Yagual was charged with burglary as a sexually-motivated felony, petit larceny and criminal trespass. The court issued a temporary order of protection for the victim against Yagual but he was released on his own recognizance during a court appearance on Wednesday, July 17. The exact location of the building is being withheld to protect the victim.

An attorney for Yagual could not be reached for comment on the case by T&V’s press time.

Senior mugged for plastic bottles outside Associated

Associated Supermarket in Stuyvesant Town (Photo by Sabina Mollot)

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

Police arrested a man for stealing a bag of plastic bottles from a senior in front of the Associated at 409 East 14th Street on Friday, July 19 around 3:45 p.m.

The 72-year-old victim was returning plastic bottles for the deposit outside the store when 48-year-old John Thompson approached him and grabbed the bag from his hand, attempting to remove it by force.

The victim told police that he asked Thompson to give him the bag back and Thompson responded by allegedly punching him in the face and knocking him to the ground before fleeing the scene.

Continue reading →

Man wanted for robbery on East 23rd

Robbery suspect

The New York City Police Department is asking the public’s assistance identifying a man wanted for questioning in connection to a robbery that occurred on East 23rd Street this week.

It was reported to police that on Tuesday, July 23 at 6:10 a.m., a 34-year-old man was walking west on East 23rd Street when an unidentified man demanded money and threw the victim to the ground. The man proceeded to punch the victim numerous times in the face and removed his cell phone, $200 and credit cards before fleeing east on 23rd Street.  The victim received cuts to the left side of his face.

Anyone with information in regard to the identity of this male is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at nypdcrimestoppers.com or on Twitter @ NYPDTips.

All calls are strictly confidential.

Multiple shoplifting arrests, including in Peter Cooper Village

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

Multiple people were arrested for shoplifting throughout the neighborhood in the last week, including multiple suspects charged with robbery after the incidents reportedly turned violent and one case where a suspect was arrested in Peter Cooper Village after fleeing.

Shiron Parsons, 29, was arrested in Peter Cooper Village last week after he allegedly shoplifted from a CVS on East 23rd Street.

Police said that Parsons removed items from the CVS at 338 East 23rd Street near First Avenue on Saturday, July 6 at 4:56 p.m. An employee said that he put the items into a Trader Joe’s bag before he left without paying.

Police said that Parsons then got into a beige vehicle and fled east on East 23rd Street. Officers stopped Parsons at East 23rd Street and Avenue C but Parsons then fled south into Peter Cooper Village and was ultimately arrested in front of 2 Peter Cooper Road.

Continue reading →

Officers honored at community council

Police officers Colin Dowd, Peter Rodriguez, Joe Sgroi, Kevin Fainer and Manny Rodriguez were honored for their work at the 13th precinct’s most recent community council meeting last month. (Photo by Maria Rocha-Buschel)

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

Five officers at the 13th precinct were honored as cops of the month at the precinct’s last community council meeting before the summer break on Tuesday, June 18. Deputy Inspector Steven Hellman said that crime in the precinct has been steadily decreasing and he said that the community policing program that launched at the precinct last October has helped.

“I attribute that to the cops on patrol and the NCO philosophy that’s driving down crime,” he said, referring to the program that assigns Neighborhood Coordination Officers to different areas in the precinct. “We had a tough year last year but we’ve been doing better.”

The first awards at the meeting went to two officers who work together as NCOs for Sector A, which covers Stuyvesant Town and Gramercy. Officers Peter Rodriguez and Manny Rodriguez caught a man on Avenue C earlier in the month after they suspected him of riding a stolen motorcycle. After the man was arrested, the officers found that he was wanted citywide for stolen motorcycles and had also been arrested for felony assault after molesting his sister.

Continue reading →

Attempted rape in Stuyvesant Town

IMG_7525

Attempted sexual assault suspect

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

Police are looking for a man who attempted to rape a woman in Stuyvesant Town in the early morning hours of Saturday, June 29. 

The 20-year-old victim was walking near the M level exterior door of 7 Stuyvesant Oval around 5 a.m. when the suspect approached her from behind and grabbed her by the neck.

Police said that the victim resisted but she was knocked unconscious and fell to the ground when the suspect attempted to sexually assault her. Police said that another resident who was nearby came to the victim’s aid and called 911, after which the suspect fled on foot.

The suspect was last seen running west on East 17th Street towards Second Avenue. The victim suffered bruises to her forehead, neck and elbows and was transported to a nearby hospital for evaluation. 

Continue reading →

Registered sex offender arrested for L train groping

Suspect Gian Verdelli

By Maria Rocha-Buschel 

This Friday, police arrested a man with multiple previous convictions for sex crimes in connection with a subway groping that took place on the L train near First Avenue earlier this week. The suspect was identified as 67-year-old Gian Verdelli, who the Daily News reported was just released from prison in May after he was convicted of another incident of sex abuse on the subway. 

The 37-year-old victim was on an Eighth Avenue-bound L train traveling from Bedford to First Avenue on Wednesday, June 26 around 8:50 a.m. when Verdelli allegedly put his hand under her dress and groped her. She and Verdelli both got off the train at First Avenue, where the victim took a photo of Verdelli with her phone before he fled the station. 

Verdelli is a level 2 sex offender and lives in a shelter on Wards Island, according to the New York State sex offender registry, and he was arrested there on Friday. 

Continue reading →

Man wanted for robbery in Union Square

Robbery suspect

The New York City Police Department is asking for the public’s assistance identifying a man wanted for questioning in connection to a robbery that occurred within the confines of the 13th Precinct/Transit District 4.

It was reported to police that on Monday, June 24 at approximately 3:25 a.m. inside the Union Square subway station, a 44-year-old man boarded a downtown 6 train at the location when an unidentified man punched and kicked the victim multiple times before fleeing with the victim’s wallet containing a credit card. The victim sustained swelling to left eye but refused medical attention. The male fled the station in unknown direction.

The person wanted for questioning is described as a Hispanic man, 18-25 years of age, wearing a yellow du-rag and dark clothing.

Anyone with information in regard to the identity of the male is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at nypdcrimestoppers.com or on Twitter @NYPDTips.

All calls are strictly confidential.

ACS teens arrested for unconnected robberies

Administration for Children’s Services facility in Kips Bay (Photo via Google Maps)

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

Police arrested four teenagers on Saturday, June 15 at 9:14 a.m. for three separate robberies that took place outside the Administration for Children’s Services facility at 492 First Avenue last weekend.

One of the victims told police that he was standing outside the building around on Friday, June 14 around 11 p.m. when three boys approached him. One of the boys pulled what the victim said looked like a handgun out of his waistband and put it against the victim’s chest while saying, “Go buy me cigarettes, I’m not f—king playing.”

Police said that around midnight on Saturday, June 15, an 18-year-old girl approached a man who was standing outside the ACS facility and demanded his phone, then allegedly reached into the victim’s pockets. The victim said that another teen who was with the girl at the time said, “If you touch her, I’ll f—k you up.” The teens fled with his phone.

Continue reading →

Man robbed for his Citi Bike on East 14th Street

Citi Bike robbery suspects

By Sabina Mollot

Cops are looking for a group of teenagers who robbed a man for his Citi Bike on East 14th Street.

The victim, a 23-year-old man, told police he was riding his Citi Bike on June 4 at around 9 p.m. on First Avenue when he stopped on 14th Street to get something to eat.

Robbery suspect

When he left his bike to go inside Halal Guys at 307 East 14th Street, he saw a group of teens try to take the bike. The victim confronted them and was able to grab the bike back at first, but was struck on the head by one of the teens and he dropped it. The group then fled with the bike, heading west on East 15th Street towards Second Avenue. Police later found the Citi Bike nearby.

Anyone with information is asked to call 1-800-577-TIPS (8477). All calls will be kept confidential.

Man put in headlock for his headphones

Robbery suspect

By Sabina Mollot

Cops are looking for a mugger who tried to rob another man for his headphones while riding the M102.

Police said the bus was heading south and as the victim, a 22-year-old man, was about to get off at Third Avenue and 14th Street, an unknown man snuck up behind him and tried to pull off his headphones.

The victim was able to grab them back, but the mugger didn’t give up, instead putting the victim in a headlock. The victim was able to push the other man off him, at which point, the mugger told him, “Don’t stare at me,” before fleeing the bus.

The incident occurred on Saturday, April 20 at about 10 p.m., but the NYPD released the information on Monday.

Continue reading →

Man wanted for multiple bank robberies

Bank robbery suspect

By Maria Rocha-Buschel

Police are looking for a man connected to a number of bank robberies that took place in the 9th and 13th precincts earlier this month.

A man reportedly approached the teller’s window inside the Chase Bank at 69 Fifth Avenue on Friday, May 17 around 1:15 p.m., threatened that he had a weapon and demanded money. The teller complied and gave the man an undetermined amount of cash, after which he fled the location. He didn’t display a weapon during the incident and no injuries were reported.

Not long after this incident at 1:25 p.m., the same man approached a teller’s window inside the Valley National Bank at 111 Fourth Avenue near East 12th Street. He threatened that he was in possession of a weapon and demanded money. The teller complied and the suspect fled in an unknown direction with an undetermined amount of cash. There were no weapons displayed during this incident and no injuries were reported.

Continue reading →