Robbery: Strong-armed while soused
While walking eastbound on the W. 400 block of 18th St. just before 4 a.m. on Fri., July 4, a young man was approached by two strangers who attacked him, then made off with his wallet and an iPhone valued at $270. The wallet was found nearby — with all of the credit cards, but none of the $90 in cash reported to police by the admittedly “highly intoxicated” victim — who was not seriously injured, but did sustain several small cuts and bruises to the face and neck.
Grand Larceny: Carelessness gets a real workout
He had a lock on the moves for a productive exercise routine — but when an ill-prepared musclehead didn’t bring his “A” game to Locker Room Safety 101, it ended up costing him $1,600. That was the price of an Apple laptop placed in a backpack and stored in a locker — sans the lock strongly recommended by management — when a light brained heavy lifter stashed it for safe keeping, during his 90-minute workout at the 215 W. 23rd St. location of Crunch Gym, in the early evening of Sun., July 6.
Criminal Possession: Pot busts stem from public displays
Even anything-goes, mile-high Denver says it’s a crime to smoke recreational marijuana in the great outdoors. In Chelsea, though, the simple act of carrying Mary Jane is enough to put you under a cloud of suspicion — and get you arrested. Such is the lesson learned in the early evening of Tues., July 8, by a young man who was observed to be in possession of a lit marijuana cigarette. After being taken into custody by officers of the 10th Precinct, it was learned that he had an outstanding warrant. It was the final wave of open air reefer madness incidents. On Sat., July 5, at 1:15 and 2:00 a.m. respectively, two men were arrested in West Chelsea for lighting up a cigar and a cigarette packed with tobacco of the decidedly wacky variety. The cigar smoker attempted to bust a deft move by vigorously chucking the offending item, hoping that officers would not be able to locate it — and, as a consequence, would not be able to make the charge of “possession” stick. His mellow was harshed on both counts.
Vehicle Leaving the Scene: Struck by car, helped by cab
After a night of revelry (and heavy alcohol consumption) at Industry bar (355 W. 52nd St., btw. Eighth & Ninth Aves.), a man who recently graduated to legal drinking age was heading for a friend’s apartment, to sleep it off. Shortly after departing the club (at around 3:30 a.m. on Sat., July 5), he was struck by a vehicle, which then fled the scene. An unknown person, or persons, assisted the victim into a taxi, which then dropped him off in the 600 block of W. 42nd St. Later, the victim (citing his state of extreme intoxication) was unable to pinpoint the exact location where he was hit, complicating the NYPD’s ability to canvass the area for the vehicle or track down available surveillance video of the incident. The victim suffered a broken foot and lacerations to the face.
—Scott Stiffler
