By Tom Tracy
Painful translation Three men beat up and robbed a 34-year-old man who didn’t understand what the thugs were talking about when they demanded his money. Cops from the 76th Precinct said that the victim was walking past the corner of Smith and Baltic streets at 3:30 a.m. on December 22 when the suspects, one a bald, hulking 6’3”, 200-pound black man in a blue jacket with a snorkel hood, approached and asked him for his money. When the victim said that he didn’t speak English, the suspects threw him to the ground and beat him, officials were told. The suspects robbed the victim of $20 in cash and his wallet and cell phone before running off. The victim took himself to Long Island College Hospital where he was listed in stable condition after treatment. Cops were looking for the suspects as this paper went to press. Anyone with information regarding their whereabouts is urged to call the 76th Precinct at (718) 834-3211. All calls will be kept confidential. New Year’s blaze An area man was arrested last week for allegedly setting ablaze a set of holiday decorations adorning his estranged wife’s door. Officials said that the suspect, 32, was charged with reckless endangerment and attempted arson when he set the Christmas wrapping paper attached to the front door of his wife’s apartment on Columbia Street near Huntington Street on the morning of December 30. His wife was in the apartment when he tried to set the door on fire, officials said. Police were told that the small blaze the man set was doused almost immediately. A FDNY fire marshal, however, said that the blaze “had incendiary potential to spread inside of the above mentioned apartment.” No injuries were reported. The man’s name was not being released because of his relationship to the victim. Game stealer nabbed A 15-year-old boy was arrested at the Smith and 9th Street train station last week for robbing another teen of his portable game system at knifepoint. Officials said that the teen was charged with menacing, robbery, petit larceny and criminal possession of a weapon for the 5 p.m. robbery, which took place on December 28. His victim claimed that he was at the station playing with his Nintendo game when the teen yanked the hand held console out of his hands. The teen then pointed a screwdriver at the victim, claiming, “I’m going to cut you,” officials said this week. The teen fled the area only to be arrested by a short time later. Bad timing Cops have released more information of the arrest of Jason Montero, a would-be thief whose own arrogance and poor timing apparently led to his downfall. Officials said that Montero, who has now been connected to two robberies on Court Street in the month of December, was apprehended on December 19 after he took $660 from Muns Gormet Bodega near the corner of Court and Amity streets. According to the 76th Precinct, Montero robbed a grocery on Court Street near Degraw Street in early December. He reportedly returned to the same grocery on the night of December 19, but store employees immediately recognized him, locked the door and called police. Montero then walked to Mun’s Gormet, where he stuck his hand in his pocket and claimed that he had a gun. He had just emptied the register of its receipts and stormed out the door when he walked right past two police officers who were looking for the thief that had just attempted to rob the grocery near Degraw Street. Montero was just a few feet away when a store worker told police that he had just robbed the place. Cops subdued Montero after a brief struggle and took him into custody, officials said. Two injured Two motorists were rushed to the hospital Wednesday afternoon after a Chevy Trailblazer collided with an 18-wheeler on the Brooklyn Queens Expressway (BQE), officials said. Police said that the accident took place at 1:30 p.m. on December 26 on the entrance ramp to the BQE from the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel. While details were sketchy about the accident as this paper went to press, it appeared that the SUV accidentally rammed into the back of the flatbed truck, bounced off the vehicle and turned 360 degrees, slamming into a concrete divider. The force of the impact was so severe that the heavy concrete divider was moved at least a foot, officials said. At the time of the accident, the truck was carrying a front loading tractor. Officials said that the SUV driver and a passenger, a man and a woman, were pinned in their vehicle for upwards of ten minutes as rescuers rallied to remove them from their vehicle. Both were taken to Lutheran Medical Center, where they were listed in stable condition following treatment. Traffic on the BQE was halted for a half hour as an investigation was conducted. Kneecapped Cops are investigating a rather bizarre incident in which a gunman walked into a Henry Street grocery and shot a worker in the kneecap for no apparent reason. Officials said that the victim, 35, was alone in the store located between West Ninth and Huntington streets at 2:30 p.m. on December 17 when the unidentified suspect walked in. Cops were told that the man approached the victim, shot him and then ran off. If any words were exchanged between the two men, cops haven’t reported it, officials said. The victim was listed in stable condition after treatment at an area hospital. Cops are asking anyone with information regarding this incident to come forward. Calls can be made to the NYPD CrimeStoppers hotline at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential. Help wipe out graffiti As the ongoing war against graffiti vandals continues, cops are offering up to $500 in reward money to anyone who can lead them to producers of graffiti vandalism. The hefty reward is part of the city’s ongoing push to rid New York of graffiti vandals. Graffiti is one of the leading quality-of-life complaints brought to the NYPD. The police believe there is a perception that if a community will tolerate graffiti, they will put up with other criminal activities, such as drug dealing and prostitution. Anyone with information about graffiti vandalism is urged to contact either 311 or 911. New Year’s looting Two men were arrested last week after being caught looting a 1998 Ford Van on New Year’s morning, police alleged. Officials said that Steven Erickson, 27, and Charles Wold, 44, were allegedly seen breaking into the van while it sat near the corner of Carroll Street and Polhemus Place at 7 a.m. on January 1. Residents told police that they were woken up by the sound of shattering glass. When they went to their window to investigate, they found Erickson and Wold allegedly rooting through the van, taking the vehicle’s portable GPS device and other items. Dispatched cops from the 78th Precinct searched the area, apprehending the two suspects twenty minutes later on President Street near 7th Avenue. When they searched the two suspects, cops allegedly found a hammer and a stolen Star of David on Erickson and a hypodermic needle from Wold. Erickson was charged with criminal mischief and criminal possession of stolen property. Wold was charged with criminal mischief and criminal possession of a controlled substance. Not very wise Cops apprehended a 20-year-old woman in connection with a tug-of-war purse snatching at the corner of Lincoln Place and Plaza Street West. Officials said that Atara Wisdom was standing near the corner at 10:15 a.m. on December 29 when he allegedly grabbed a passing woman’s handbag. Police were told that the woman pulled the bag back in an attempt to retrieve it. Following a furious tug-of-war over the bag, the victim fell to the ground suffering a cut and a bruise to her hand, officials said. Wisdom allegedly scooped up the bag and ran off, only to be apprehended a short time later. Cops charged the young woman with assault, menacing, grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property. Game stealer nabbed A 15-year-old boy was arrested at the Smith and 9th Street train station last week for robbing another teen of his portable game system at knifepoint. Officials said that the teen was charged with menacing, robbery, petit larceny and criminal possession of a weapon for the 5 p.m. robbery, which took place on December 28. His victim claimed that he was at the station playing with his Nintendo game when the teen yanked the hand held console out of his hands. The teen then pointed a screwdriver at the victim, claiming, “I’m going to cut you,” officials said this week. The teen fled the area only to be arrested by a short time later. Car craziness Two seniors were killed in separate car accidents that took place just two blocks away from each other, cops from the nearby 72nd Precinct said this week. Officials said that one person had been arrested for one of the accidents and then fleeing the scene. Witnesses told cops that Francisco Guerrero, 73, was crossing Fourth Avenue at 52nd Street at 3:30 p.m. on December 28 when he was struck by a passing 1997 Dodge Caravan. The Caravan was making a U-turn from southbound along Fourth Avenue to the northbound lanes, when it struck the senior, who died of his injuries at Lutheran Medical Center. Officials alleged that the Caravan never stopped, but was quickly brought to a halt by officers responding to the scene. The driver, identified as Sands Street resident Lawrence Myers, was taken into custody and charged with leaving the scene of an accident, reckless endangerment and for making an illegal U-turn. Police said that on December 30, two days after Guerrero’s death, a 65-year-old woman was struck down at the corner of 52nd Street and Sixth Avenue. The woman, who was returning home from church at the time, was rushed to Lutheran Medical Center following the 10 a.m. accident, but died of her injuries, officials said. The motorist who hit her remained at the scene. No charges had been filed as this paper went to press. Gunmen sought Two men are being sought for a gunpoint robbery on Seventh Avenue recently. Cops from the 78th Precinct were told that the victim, 52, was walking on Seventh Avenue between Seventh and Eighth streets at 1:30 p.m. on December 13 when the two suspects, described only as black males in their 20s, stopped him and flashed a gun. “Don’t move,” one of the suspects said. “Just give me the money.” The thieves robbed the victim of $1,000 and ran off, officials said. No injuries were reported. Cops were still looking for the thieves as this paper went to press. Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to contact the 78th Precinct at (718) 636-6511. All calls will be kept confidential. More gun troubles An area woman told police that she was robbed of her purse at gunpoint just steps from her home recently. The victim, 27, said that she was walking towards her Eighth Street home between Third and Fourth avenues at 1 p.m. December 16 when an unidentified thug approached and pulled a gun on her. The woman was forced to hand over her purse, which contained $152, officials said. Wipe out graffiti As the ongoing war against graffiti continues, a $500 reward is being offered to anyone with information about graffiti vandals in their neighborhoods. The hefty reward is part of the city’s new push to rid New York of graffiti vandals. Graffiti is one of the leading quality of life complaints brought to police. Anyone with information about graffiti vandalism is urged to contact either 311 or 911.
