Baby-shower slay
Police arrested Jonathan Maldonado, 21, on Wed., March 11, and charged him with stabbing a New Jersey man to death on March 7 on Clinton St. at Cherry St. after an argument at a baby shower in the LaGuardia Houses.
Maldonado and the victim, Steven Boysen, 21, of Willingboro, N.J., carried their argument outside, according to the complaint filed by the Manhattan district attorney. A witness told police that he saw Maldonado with a knife and heard him say, “Yo, Steve — I stabbed you.”
Emergency medical technicians found Boysen lying on the ground with a stab wound in the middle of his chest, according to the complaint. Taken to New York Downtown Hospital, Boysen was declared dead of the knife thrust, which had penetrated his heart, shortly after he arrived at the hospital.
Maldonado, a resident of 286 South St. in the LaGuardia Houses, pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder and was released without bail pending a June 22 court appearance. Police did not say what caused the argument.
Newsstand gone
A woman walked into the 10th Precinct police station and told the desk sergeant that she had closed up her curbside newsstand at 201 W. 14th St. at Seventh Ave. at about 4 p.m. Thurs., March 5, and returned the next day at 10 a.m. and discovered that it was gone along with the periodicals in it. The victim said her stand was weighted with sand in the base and had PETA stickers on all sides.
‘Blind’ bump ruse
Police arrested four men, one of them walking with a metal stick and posing as a blind man, for attempting to rob five victims at Second Ave. and St. Mark’s Place around 12:35 a.m. Sun., March 8.
Dominick Lapsley, 21, walking with the stick, purposely bumped into one of the victims, as his accomplice, Benjamin Pleasant, 40, appeared and shouted, “Don’t run into the blind man. Give me your wallets,” according to the charges filed by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
Pleasant then rifled one victim’s pockets, but they were empty. Then two other accomplices joined the two men, and the four of them began punching the victims, according to the charges. Police arrested Lapsley, of W. 149th St., and Pleasant, of E. Third St., at the scene. Two other accomplices, Warren Duncan, 28, of Manhattan, and Musa Azhar, 19, of Brooklyn, were arrested a short time later. Lapsley and Pleasant were held in lieu of $5,000 and $8,000 bail, respectively. Duncan was freed on $2,000 bail, and Azhar was freed on his own recognizance pending a May 8 court appearance.
Mugging arrest
Police arrested Ian Campbell, 19, of W. 41st St., on Wed., March 4, and charged him with being one of two suspects who beat and robbed two victims on W. 10th St. between Sixth and Fifth Aves. on Feb. 7. Campbell and his accomplice attacked the first victim at about 4:35 a.m., punched him and stole his wallet, cell phone and house keys, according to charges filed by the Manhattan D.A. A short time later, the suspects put another victim in a chokehold, took his wallet and cell phone and fled, the charges say.
Campbell was held pending arraignment this week. Police are still seeking the accomplice.
Cell-phone theft
Police arrested Antonio Evangelista during the early hours of Fri., March 6, and charged him with punching a victim, 22, and taking his cell phone from his pocket at the northeast corner of Jones and W. Fourth Sts. Police said Evangelista accused the victim of having his cell phone, then launched the attack when the victim denied it.
Shoplift gets hairy
A shoplifting incident at the Rite Aid at 501 Sixth Ave. near W. 13th St. at 8:15 p.m. Wed., March 11, turned violent when two employees tried to stop Joel Fares, 31, attempting to walk out without paying for 12 bottles of hair-care products and a package of eyeglass lens wipes, police said. The suspect struggled with the employees and was holding a box cutter in his right hand by the time he was subdued and charged with robbery, police said.
‘I’ll kick your ass’
A security guard, 52, saw two men rummaging through the security booth of a construction site at 55 Bethune St. at Washington St. at 4:55 a.m. Sun., March 8, and followed the suspects to the end of the block, where he confronted them, police said. One of the suspects pulled a knife and said, “I’ll kick your ass, white boy.” The suspects, described only as black, one 5 feet 6 inches tall, and the other 5 feet 10 inches tall, took the victim’s cell phone and fled, police said.
Dead to rights
The super of 14 Fifth Ave. between W. Eighth and W. Ninth Sts. called 911 at 1 p.m. Wed., March 11, when he saw a man entering an apartment that had been sealed by police and formerly occupied by a resident who was found dead in the place the previous night. Police found Ahron Meisels, 27, in the apartment and charged him with criminal trespass. Police did not say what the suspect’s relation was to the deceased.
Tools missing
The manager of a building under construction at 385 W. 12th St. at Washington St. told police on Monday morning March 9 that 42 construction tools, ranging in value from $15 to $725, had been stolen from the site between Fri., March 6, and Monday morning. The building, open with no doors or windows on the ground level, was unoccupied over the weekend, the manager said.
Diamond theft
Police arrested Remy Fishbein, 28, and charged him with grand larceny for taking a diamond ring valued at $4,000 from Jason’s Jewelry Shop, 44 W. 14th St. between Fifth and Sixth Aves., at 3:45 p.m. Wed., March 11. Police did not relate the details of the theft, but said the ring was not recovered.
Subway exposure
Daniel Leon, 28, of North Bergen, N.J., was arrested on a No. 6 train Tuesday morning March 10 and charged with exposing himself to passengers while riding between Union Square and E. 23rd St., a D.A. spokesperson said. A credit card not his own was found in Leon’s pocket at the time of his arrest, prosecutors said. He was charged with public lewdness and possession of stolen property.
Dan the plaster man
A resident of 229 W. 16th St. hired a man she knew only as Dan to do plaster work in her apartment while she was at work on Tues., March 10, police said. She returned at 7 p.m. to find Dan was gone, no work done and an iPod, laptop computer, two radios and a loudspeaker and a $1,000 Rolex watch were missing, police said.
— Albert Amateau
Corners to forever honor officers
Family members and loved ones of slain Auxiliary Officer Nicholas Pekearo held a copy of the street sign honoring him that was unveiled at Sullivan and Bleecker Sts. last Saturday, as they were joined by Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, second from right. To the left of Kelly is Iola Latman, Pekearo’s mother. A separate sign, at the intersection’s opposite corner, was dedicated to Pekearo’s patrol partner, Eugene Marshalik. The two unarmed, volunteer Sixth Precinct officers were slain two years ago as they were trailing a crazed gunman who had just shot down a restaurant worker blocks away.
