A Queens grand jury indicted a Brooklyn man for first-degree attempted murder after ramming into an NYPD officer with a stolen car in North Corona last month.
Keyah Richardson, 19, of Sutter Avenue in Brownsville, was arraigned Wednesday in Queens Supreme Court on a 19-count indictment charging him with attempted murder for hitting the cop who was investigating the auto theft. Richardson was also hit with a slew of other charges for leading police on a white-knuckle chase through the streets of Corona, where he drove up on a sidewalk and nearly hit a grandfather who was walking with his young granddaughter.
If convicted, Richardson faces up to 40 years to life in prison.
According to the charges, at around 5 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 18, NYPD officers investigating a report of a stolen 2020 white Infiniti saw Richardson sitting in the stolen vehicle in front of 34-14 99th St. in North Corona. The car had no license plates on it.
Richardson was then seen driving the car in reverse and onto a sidewalk, almost hitting the young girl who was walking by with her grandfather. An NYPD sergeant identified himself as a police officer and ordered Richardson to stop. Instead, Richardson drove forward toward Officer Bartholomew Tully of the Patrol Borough Queens North Community Response Team, who was walking toward the front of the Infiniti. Tully jumped onto the hood of an adjacent car to escape injury but was hit anyway by Richardson.
Richardson then sped off, hitting multiple parked cars, including two unmarked police cars. He also drove the wrong way on a one-way street.
Police continued to chase after Richardson after he ditched the stolen can on 97th Street and Roosevelt Avenue and raced into the Junction Boulevard 7 train station, then ran back down to street level. He was spotted entering a building, where he scaled a ladder and jumped to an adjacent rooftop. He was finally apprehended on the roof of 38-11 97th St.
Police recovered a diagnostic key programmer, a tool commonly used to break into vehicles, as well as two license plates.
The injured officer was taken to a hospital and treated for substantial pain in his hip, knee and ankle.
“This defendant is alleged to have stolen a car and then used it as a battering ram to strike a New York City police officer,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said. “The defendant then nearly hit two pedestrians, a man and his young granddaughter, exited the stolen vehicle and led cops on a neighborhood-wide manhunt until he was ultimately captured on a rooftop. We have secured a grand jury indictment charging the defendant with attempted murder in the first degree, attempted assault in the first degree and other crimes.”
Queens Supreme Court Justice Toni Cimino remanded Richardson into custody without bail and ordered him to return to court on Oct. 7.
