DNA nails permit pilferer
Police arrested Daniel Lyles, 23, after he jumped a subway turnstile on Oct. 20. They also identified him as the suspect in the theft of a New York Police Department parking permit in 2012.
An officer said he spotted Lyles jumping the turnstile at the entrance to the 1/ 2 / 3 train subway stop at W. 14th St. and Seventh Ave., around 2:15 p.m. Once he was arrested and booked at the precinct, police found that his name and information matched DNA recovered from a crime scene on March 16, 2012.
Lyles’s DNA came from blood left on the broken window of a police cruiser parked outside the Sixth Precinct, on W. 10th St. near Hudson St. In that incident, Lyles allegedly smashed his arm through the car’s window to snatch the parking permit off the windshield.
For the 2012 incident, Lyles was charged with criminal mischief, petty larceny and auto stripping. For the incident this past week, he was charged with intent to fraudulently obtain transit without paying and criminal trespassing.
Was nearly a riot
Police arrested Elijah Ellis, 27, after he allegedly started a huge brawl near Washington Square Park early on Thurs., Oct. 17, that also led to two other arrests.
Cops said that the incident began as a verbal dispute among a group of about 20 people, around 4:15 a.m., on a sidewalk near the corner of W. Eighth and MacDougal Sts. Ellis then allegedly pushed a woman into the street, causing her to fall and almost be hit by a car, which set off what police described as a fight so intense it bordered on a riot.
When officers arrived to arrest Ellis, he reportedly tried to push them away and flailed his arms to prevent being handcuffed. Two of Ellis’s friends, Deshawn Bailey, 20, and Raymond Reyes, 24, also tried to prevent the officers from making the arrest, and reportedly refused multiple orders to leave the scene.
Ellis was charged with reckless endangerment, resisting arrest, inciting to riot, four counts of disorderly conduct, harassment and unlawful possession of marijuana. Bailey was charged with obstructing governmental administration and three counts of disorderly conduct. Reyes was charged with resisting arrest and three counts of disorderly conduct.
Town Car taxi trouble
Police arrested Hassan Syed, 37, after he was spotted allegedly driving a Town Car taxi without a license, then led officers on a high-speed road chase early on Oct. 20.
Police first noticed Syed shortly after midnight, near the corner of Christopher St. and Seventh Ave. South, where he was dropping off and attempting to pick up paying customers in a black Lincoln. Cops said he was driving erratically, and changing lanes without signaling, so they tried to pull him over near the intersection.
But Syed reportedly sped away from the police cars, racing south and eventually trying to enter the Holland Tunnel at around 55 miles per hour, even though the tunnel entrance was full of traffic and crossing pedestrians. The officers were able to cut him off and stop him before entering the tunnel. They then discovered that, in addition to his dangerous driving, Syed lacked a valid state license for picking up fares.
He was charged with reckless endangerment, reckless driving and unlawfully fleeing a police officer.
Chase was on the case
Police arrested Kathryn Zeleny, 37, on the afternoon of Oct. 18 after she allegedly tried to cash a check she had stolen and then forged.
An employee of the Chase bank at 32 University Place told officers that Zeleny walked in around 4 p.m. and tried to cash the fraudulent check, on which she had written a value of $2,490. Upon apprehending Zeleny, officers discovered the check had been stolen from an unwitting man, who later stated he never authorized the payment.
Zeleny was charged with possession of a forged instrument and criminal possession of stolen property.
Meatpacking sucker punch
Police said they arrested Guillermo Reyes, 32, after he attacked a man after an argument in the Meatpacking District early on Sun., Oct. 20.
The alleged victim, 50, said he was in the middle of a dispute with Reyes around 3:45 a.m., near the corner of Little W. 12th St. and Ninth Ave., when the latter suddenly punched him in the face. Officers near the busy intersection saw the commotion and quickly responded, breaking up the fight. The fallen man was treated by paramedics for cuts and bruises.
Reyes was also found to be carrying a small bag of alleged marijuana in his pocket. He was charged with assault, harassment and unlawful possession of marijuana.
— Sam Spokony
