The alleged arsonist accused of torching 11 police vehicles in Brooklyn last month and ordered released following arraignment on federal charges Monday wound up being re-arrested, this time by NYPD officers, for a separate misdemeanor charge.
Jakhi Lodgson-McCray, 21, surrendered to police custody on Monday morning alongside his lawyer and mother. He has been sought by law enforcement since June 12 when he allegedly scaled the fence of a lot on DeKalb Avenue between Wilson and Central Avenues used by the NYPD to store police vehicles and set them ablaze.
Despite boosting fingerprint and surveillance evidence, McCray’s attorney, Ronald Kuby, said that the judge moved to release his client on house arrest. However, just as he was being fitted with an electronic ankle monitor, NYPD officers took McCray into custody on a different charge.
“Before he could get his ankle monitor, the NYPD decided to arrest him for some misdemeanor from last September because I guess they really couldn’t allow him to spend tonight at home,” Kuby said. “There was some protest at Columbia last year, and they decided to charge him with a misdemeanor over it.”
Last month, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said that McCray was a known protester who was wanted for impersonating a student and causing destruction of property.
“He’s also wanted for a criminal mischief incident in Columbia University back in September, where he disguised himself as a student and caused over $1,000 of damage to a statue on the campus,” Chief Kenny said.
In torching the NYPD cars in a Bushwick parking lot, prosecutors allege that McCray caused over $800,000 in damages in an effort to prevent police response to a protest that weekend.
Court documents reveal that police recovered sunglasses from the scene with fingerprints matching McCray.
“This destructive act of arson was deliberate, dangerous, and deeply disruptive,” United States Attorney Joseph Nocella said. “Setting police vehicles ablaze is not a form of protest—it is a federal crime. Our office will not tolerate violence or destruction that undermines law enforcement efforts to ensure public safety and will prosecute this individual to the fullest extent of the law.”
Meanwhile, McCray prepared a statement through his attorney in which he thanked his “comrades” for support as he faces federal charges.
“There’s a real chance that I won’t see the outside of a cell for years, but I make this choice clear of mind and, in a naive way, hopeful. It’s a hope that comes from feeling loved and supported by my friends, my family, and my comrades that have rallied in support of me in wake of the accusations. It’s a feeling that I cherish,” part of McCray’s statement read. “My charge comes with a minimum sentence of five years and a maximum of 20.”
McCray appeared in Manhattan criminal court on Tuesday morning where he was arraigned on the September charge before being released.
