Results tagged “police”

[UPDATE BELOW] An NYPD officer was shot inside a Bronx public housing project just before 12:30 p.m., according to police scanner reports. The wire dispatches indicate that an emotionally disturbed person shot an officer at 3073 Park Avenue in the Bronx and "barricaded [himself] with a gun inside the [apartment]." It's unclear if the officer was on duty at the time of the shooting, but responding officers put him in a patrol car and drove him to Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center, according to the scanner. more ›

The owner of Billy’s Antiques and Props on E. Houston was hauled off in cuffs after more than a decade hawking subway signs in his store. Yesterday around 11 a.m. a swarm of NYPD officers accessed the establishment with bolt cutters, reported Young Manhattanite. According to Billy Leroy, who was released 8 hours later, they came for the subway signs sold in his junk shop. “Sadly I think it is the end of the subway signs at Billy's,” he said in an email to NYC the Blog, adding that “My question to the MTA is why did they act now and not 12 years ago, but all this will be played out in court." more ›

An off-duty cop is facing DWI charges after he crashed his vehicle into a parked car last night in Woodside, Queens. Officer Matthew Woods—who is assigned to the narcotics bureau—was under the influence when he lost control of his car on 65th Place between Woodside Avenue and Queens Boulevard, a police spokesman told the Daily News. There were no injuries in the crash, and if history is any indication, he'll likely be able to plead down to lesser charges. more ›

The NYPD says a computer database glitch is responsible for repeatedly dispatching officers to a Brooklyn house where two law-abiding senior citizens reside. Since 2002, cops have knocked on the door of a Marine Park home owned by 83-year-old Walter Martin and his 82-year-old wife Rose at least 50 times in search of witnesses, accused robbers, and murder suspects. more ›

A Bronx man has filed a $1.5 million lawsuit against the city claiming he was wrongfully arrested on made-up charges of soliciting sex from an undercover cop—and the NYPD kept him behind bars for so long he missed his father's funeral. "It's very upsetting," 51-year-old security guard Clifton Quarles Jr. said in a statement issued to the Daily News. "My father was my best friend and I missed his funeral. I will have to live with that for a lifetime." more ›

After hearing gunshots, an off-duty NYPD officer tried to chase down a group of men involved in the East Harlem shooting—leading to another barrage of bullets that left one man injured. When the cop started trailing a group of men reportedly involved in a shooting near Lexington Avenue and 103rd Street last night at around 10 p.m., there was a second exchange of gunfire and a man was hit in the leg, the Daily News reports. It's unclear if the off-duty officer fired any shots. more ›

For some reason, police seem to think that 83-year-old Walter Martin and his 82-year-old wife Rose are up to no good. Officers have been dispatched to the couple's Marine Park home at least 50 times in the past eight years in search of perps including a robbery suspect, an alleged murderer, and a cop accused of raping his stepdaughter. It's not entirely clear why cops keep visiting the Martins, but the Brooklyn seniors told the Daily News they've had enough. "I am fearful that if a no-knock warrant is issued with my address that my husband or I will end up having a heart attack," Rose wrote in a letter to Police Commissioner Ray Kelly. more ›

Mayor Bloomberg says NYPD detectives should start parking their cars legally instead of complaining about an Internal Affairs Bureau tow truck unit that has been towing their unmarked vehicles. "They can tell it to the judge or tell it to their precinct commander, and they'll work it out," Bloomberg told the Daily News. "The law should apply to everyone." more ›

The NYPD sting that culminated in the arrests of 28 accused drug dealers targeted two rival drug crews working out of a housing project near Lincoln Center. Officers raided the Amsterdam Houses at 6 a.m. yesterday in a sweep dubbed "Operation Opera House" and nabbed the suspects—three of whom are high school students. more ›

Police arrested 28 people—including three high school students—in a cocaine and crack bust in a housing project near Lincoln Center. The suspects are accused of selling drugs inside the Amsterdam Houses—a complex of 13 buildings between 61st and 65th streets, and Amsterdam and West End avenues, the Post reports. After Amsterdam Houses residents began complaining about seeing drug transactions and drug paraphernalia, officers launched an investigation and observed more than 50 drug deals in five different buildings since July. Officials told the tabloid that dealers used students who lived in the complex as "look-outs and dealers-in-training." According to the indictment [Word document], 12 of the suspects were charged with selling controlled substances near a school. more ›

NYPD detectives claim a police tow truck unit unfairly picks up their unmarked cars while ignoring illegally parked squad cars—a policy the detectives say allows tow truck operators to reach their quotas without shaming the force by hauling away patrol cars. "The department wants us to reduce crime, solve our cases and make arrests, and sometimes that requires us to park illegally," said Michael Palladino, head of the Detectives' Endowment Association. "If the practice continues, escapes and injuries are inevitable." more ›

In a policing strategy arguably more futile than the war on drugs, the NYPD says it will attempt to crackdown on drinking and public intoxication at tomorrow's St. Patrick's Day Parade. Officers will be dispatched across the city with orders to confiscate booze and keep drunken revelers from marching in the parade—which this year features Police Commissioner Ray Kelly as Grand Marshal. more ›

Under Mayor Bloomberg's proposed city budget, the number of NYPD officers on the streets would fall to its lowest point in 20 years. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said that if the Mayor's $46.5 billion budget is approved, the force would lose 892 officers due to attrition while welcoming aboard just 112 recruits—making the NYPD as small as it's been since 1990. With just 32,817 officers, Kelly told the Daily News the cuts would be felt. Because there will be so few rookie cops, the cuts might have a big effect on "Operation Impact"—a policing strategy that puts a large number of new officers in high-crime areas. more ›

Authorities busted Bronx bodegas for selling "nutcracker"—a sweet cocktail illegally sold to underage drinkers at delis, convenience stores and barbershops across the city. Cops arrested two bodega employees and the state suspended the beer licenses at two Mott Haven delis after an under-aged, undercover auxiliary cop was able to purchase the homemade drinks. "This is so outrageous, we are going to seek revocation," said State Liquor Authority Deputy Chief Executive Officer Michael Jones. more ›

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the NYPD is at fault for letting a man accused of multiple robberies escape from a Staten Island courthouse on Wednesday. Suspect Freddie Thompson, 35, assumed the identity of a detainee facing lesser charges for marijuana possession and was released from Richmond County Criminal Court after being sentenced to time served. "It appears the police officer didn't adequately check the identification of the prisoner," said Kelly, according to the Daily News. "There was a mistake here—no question about it." The officer who was responsible has been "placed on modified duty." Thompson is described as 6'3'', 200 lbs, with a tattoo of an executioner on his arm. more ›

Investigators have released surveillance videos of a man they believe viciously attacked and possibly sexually assaulted a woman in a Midtown bar after she refused to dance with him. Cops are trying to track down the suspect, who allegedly followed a 30-year-old nurse into a bathroom early on Thursday, barged into the stall, and left her bloodied and unconscious with a fractured skull, a broken nose and a broken eye socket. more ›

Councilmembers are pushing the NYPD to abolish a database containing the names of New Yorkers who have been stopped, frisked, and released without charges. With the NYPD stopping and frisking a record number of people last year, Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) and Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. (D-Queens) wrote a letter urging Police Commissioner Ray Kelly to get rid of files on individuals who haven't been arrested or given summonses, arguing the current policy "raises significant privacy-right concerns and suggests that these innocent people are more likely to be targeted in future criminal investigations." more ›

Cops are trying to track down two men suspected of mugging at least nine livery cab drivers in Brooklyn since December. In all of the reported robberies, the perps would hail a black cab and tell the driver to bring them to a destination in East Flatbush, often on or around East 35th Street. Once the taxi reached the destination, one of the men would pull out a gun while the other would restrain the driver and take any valuables he could, according to MyFoxNY. more ›

A Staten Island robbery suspect walked out of a courtroom a free man after he impersonated a detainee facing lesser charges. Freddie Thompson—who was supposed to be arraigned for five robberies—pretended to be a suspect held on marijuana possession charges and was sentenced to time served. Authorities apparently didn't realize the gaffe until 90 minutes later, when the other prisoner asked officials why his name hadn't been called. more ›

The NAACP says two white policemen in Yonkers assaulted a black NYPD officer as they tried to pin him with a purse snatching. Sgt. Kenneth Kissiedu, who lives in Yonkers, was heading to work in the Bronx when local cops got a call about a theft nearby. In a canvas of the area, they spotted Kissiedu walking to his car. "Yo, Yo," they allegedly shouted trying to get his attention. Then they saw that he had a gun. more ›

The 22-year-old who was shot and killed after he pointed a toy gun at a police officer had drunkenly attempted to steal cough medicine from a pharmacy hours before the fatal confrontation. "He reeked of alcohol," said 33-year-old pharmacist Maya Basin, who claims she forced George D'Amato Jr. out of the Nostrand Houses Pharmacy after he tried to steal Coricidin. "I could tell something was off right away ... He was out of it." more ›

NYPD detectives are angry that they have to follow the same parking regulations as everyone else. According to the Post, on-duty detectives have had their cars towed by a special NYPD Internal Affairs unit at least 35 times. Detectives union president Michael Palladino is furious about the police unit, which goes after illegally parked police vehicles. "The policy is ridiculous," he said. "It's an absolute waste of the taxpayers' money." NYPD spokesman Paul Browne defended the policy and insisted that no cars were towed while detectives were making arrests. "Parking placards have never authorized police to park in front of hydrants, in bus stops or in cross walks or on sidewalks," he said. What about bike lanes? more ›

Just a week after State Police Superintendent Harry Corbitt resigned amid charges Gov. Paterson used state troopers to intimidate a woman involved in a domestic violence case with a top aide, the man appointed to the position has stepped down. In a letter to the governor First Deputy Supt. Pedro Perez said “that continuing in my position as acting superintendent may be an obstacle to progress of the New York State Police, an agency I love.’’ It's still unclear whether Perez, who the Post says is currently under investigation by Attorney General Cuomo, resigned fearing the consequences of his own role in the scandal, or if working for Gov. Paterson is just that bad. more ›

Investigators are trying to figure out why a 22-year-old pointed an imitation gun at a Brooklyn cop outside a Gerritsen Beach school—triggering an incident that lead to a fatal police shooting. Law enforcement officials haven't yet determined why George D'Amato Jr. aimed a fake firearm at a uniformed officer outside of P.S. 194 or why he refused to drop the toy weapon, though D'Amato's father says the cop who fired the three shots that took his son's life "did what he had to do." more ›

UPDATE BELOW: An NYPD officer shot a man who might have "pulled out a toy gun" and "pointed it at police," according to police scanner dispatches. Details are still coming in, but multiple sources report that an officer opened fire at around 3:10 p.m. and struck a man at corner of Knapp Street and Avenue W, near P.S. 194 in Gerritsen Beach, Brooklyn. more ›

[UPDATE BELOW]: Investigators searching for the remains of a Baruch College student who disappeared 12 years ago uncovered bones in the basement of a Queens store. Law enforcement officials haven't yet linked the bones to 28-year-old undergraduate student Kristina Kupka, who vanished after her married chemistry professor got her pregnant. According to the Post, an anthropologist and the Medical Examiner's Office are studying the bones to see if they are human. If the remains are human, authorities will conduct further tests to determine if they can be linked to Kupka. more ›

All of the 55 NYPD cops charged with drunk driving since 1999 pleaded down to non-felony charges and almost every single one of them remained on the force. Although the NYPD can fire any cop "who causes serious physical injury to another person while operating a motor vehicle and is determined to be unfit for duty due to the consumption of alcohol," a Daily News investigation reveals that officers accused of drunk driving often keep their jobs after pleading guilty to lesser offenses like driving while impaired or disorderly conduct. more ›

A Bronx cop claims a superior punched him for refusing to write bogus summonses. "I'm not going to give the bread deliveryman a ticket before going into the deli and telling him," said Officer Anthony Minoia, 46, who is planning on filing suit against the city for the violent incident. "I didn't forget what it was like to be a civilian before I got a badge." more ›

A high-ranking cop has been pushed from the force after using a police vehicle (hopefully not this one) to spy on his detective wife. Julio Ordonez joined up in 1986 and rose to the No. 2 position in the NYPD’s Manhattan Housing Bureau. But a couple years ago, the law enforcement officer—who was going through a divorce—was disciplined, first for not reporting a fight with his wife Tammie, and again for “improperly using” a police vehicle to tail her. His misdeeds didn’t go unpunished. more ›

Police have released photos and surveillance footage of three men accused of stealing cellphones from 16 AT&T; and T-Mobile stores. NY1 reports that the trio has been cutting security cords and running away with the phones since December in a crime spree that spans across Manhattan and Queens. According to 1010WINS, the perps have displayed a knife in some incidents and used force, though no injuries have been reported. The three men were last spotted robbing an AT&T; store on Broadway in SoHo on Tuesday. The suspects are described as between 19 and 25 years old, and about 5'8'', 5'10'', and just over 6' respectively. If you have any information, call NYPD Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS, text TIP577 to CRIMES, or visit NYPDCrimeStoppers.com. more ›