Mini-skirts gone wild
Police arrested Jaime Rios, 45, around 4 p.m. Tues., June 29 and charged him with unlawful surveillance for training his video camera at a woman on Lafayette and Canal Sts. Rios told the cops that he left his home in Brooklyn and filmed three women in miniskirts on the train trip to Manhattan in addition to the filming on Lafayette and Canal Sts. Rios said, “I do this for personal use,” and told the cops he was sorry.
Soho DOA
Police responded to a call about an unconscious man in the third floor loft at 101 Wooster St. at 9 a.m. Wed., June 30. They found James Patrick Rothstein, 58, who was declared dead at the scene by an Emergency Medical Service team. Police sources said no criminality was suspected. Rothstein, a former bond trader with Merrill Lynch, Bear Stearns and UBS, and head of his own investment firm, has been fighting alcoholism and depression for years, especially after a recent break-up with his former wife, according to a Daily News article. The Medical Examiner’s office was investigating the cause of death.
Fatal harbor accident NYPD Harbor boats responded to a 6:20 p.m. report on Fri., July 2 of a collision between a 30-ft. Proline speedboat and a 17-ft. Bayliner runabout. One man in the smaller boat, Jijo Punthuyankunnath, 30, of Jersey City, was declared dead on arrival at Jersey City Hospital and two 30-year-old male passengers were taken to the hospital in stable condition with lesser injuries.
The operator of the 30-ft boat, Richard Aquilone, of Jersey City, was charged with second degree vehicular manslaughter, operating a vessel under the influence of alcohol and endangering the welfare of a child. Neither Aquilone, nor his wife, 35, and three children, ages two and three, were injured.
Indict property manager A Manhattan grand jury last week indicted Richard Bassik, 67, and his real estate management company Downtown Properties, Inc. on fraud, grand larceny and falsifying business records regarding 13 properties mostly in Soho and Lower Manhattan.
Bassik is charged with fraudulently diverting more than $1.7 million between January 2005 and August 2009 from the properties he was managing to his own accounts. Among the victimized properties were 115 Spring St., 41 Greene St., and buildings on Prince, Grand and Mott Sts. Bassik pleaded not guilty and was freed on bail pending a July 14 court date.
Jewelry thief still on the run Police are still seeking the public’s help in identifying a suspect wanted in connection with the armed robbery of two jewelry stories in Soho and the Village. The suspect was described as a white man, 35-45 years old, medium skin tone and about 5’9” and 180 lbs., wearing a striped blue button-down shirt and dark trousers.
On Wed., June 23 the suspect walked into the Land of Buddah store at 128 MacDougal St. at about 1 p.m., pulled a knife on the shopkeeper and forced her to the back of the store where he tied her hands. He walked out with jewelry valued at more than $7,000.
On Wed., June 9, he walked into Lunessa at 100 Thompson St. between Prince and Spring Sts. at 11:50 a.m., asked to look at engagement rings and then pulled a gun on an attendant. He made off with jewelry valued at more than $4,000.
Anyone with information is asked to phone Crime Stoppers at 800 577 TIPS (8477) or on line at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com or texting to 274637 (Crimes) and entering TIP-577. All calls are confidential.
Pot-puffin’ passer Police at the D.W.I. checkpoint on West Houston St. between Greenwich and Washington Sts. stopped Chris Simms, 29, a quarterback with the Tennessee Titans, at around 1:30 a.m. Thurs., July 1, in his 2009 Mercedes-Benz and charged him with driving while under the influence of marijuana. Simms, the son of former Giants great and current television sports analyst Phil Simms, was driving with his pregnant wife, Danielle, who was not charged. Police said Simms reeked of marijuana and that he admitted smoking pot shortly before his arrest, but none was found in the car. At his arraignment, his lawyer said Simms had told the arresting officers that he had smoked cigarettes, not marijuana. He was released on bail pending a court appearance this week.
Village vodka bash An East Orange, N.J., man was charged with hitting a man in the face with a bottle of vodka around 5:10 p.m. Sun., June 26, on the corner of Christopher and West Sts. Joshua Elston, 27, was charged with second-degree assault. His victim sustained a cut below the right eye but was not hospitalized.
— Albert Amateau
