Insults & Intrigue at Community Board 8 Meeting

Megan Finnegan Bungeroth

John Jay Park. Photo by Adam Piontek via Flickr.

Even after the two candidates for chairperson called for civility and a return to rule-following for Community Board 8, last night’s meeting devolved into a tense and emotional shouting match over the intentions of the Parks Committee versus the wants of the community in calling for improvements to John Jay Park. Read more

Senior Resource Fair

State Senator Liz Krueger is hosting the Fifth Annual Senior Resource Fair this Thursday, November 3, from 1:30 – 4:30 p.m. at Temple Emanu-El, One East 65th Street (at Fifth Avenue). The free event will feature over 50 exhibitors providing information for older adults, as well as refreshments and free resources guides. The event is designed to help make seniors aware of all the local resources available to them, from city programs to free and reduced price cultural offerings to the best ways to stay healthy. The location is fully wheelchair accessible. For more information, contact alicefisher.nyc@gmail.com, or call (212) 490-9535.

The Alchemy of Same-Sex Relationships

Gahl Sasson wants gay people to search for their soul mates.

Tomorrow night, Wednesday, Oct. 26, from 7–9 p.m., Sasson will lead a workshop called “The Alchemy of Same-Sex Relationships: Tips from Mystical Traditions for Attracting and Harmonizing Love Signs and Soul Mates” at The New York Society for Ethical Culture. Read more

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Crime Watch

Compiled by Megan Bungeroth

Very Sticky Fingers
Police from the 19th Precinct arrested a man on burglary charges this week, closing a borough-wide pattern. The man was discovered inside a fast-food donut shop in the early morning, before the store opened, with a screwdriver and flashlight (what the cops classify as burglary tools) in his possession. He supposedly gained entrance through the back of the store. Police suspect that the man is also responsible for a series of similar robberies hitting fast-food joints around Manhattan. Each time, the man would sneak into the establishment in the early morning hours and make off with whatever cash from registers and tip pools, as well as payroll checks, in one instance, he could find. Luckily, though, he left the donuts alone. Read more

Crime Watch

By Megan Finnegan Bungeroth

Assault with a Tasty Weapon
While sitting in a bar innocently sharing drinks with friends late on a Saturday night, a woman was suddenly beaned with a plastic condiment holder. The victim and her friend said an unknown man threw the container in her direction and fled the scene. The bar’s manager said that the man might have been a member of a party going on that night, but could not identify him.

Valiant Citizen Nabs Purse Snatcher
A woman was walking on East 73rd Street around 10 p.m. when a man came toward her, throwing his shoulder into hers to knock her off balance and swipe her pocketbook. The thief ran for the hills but didn’t get very far, as an ordinary citizen grabbed and held the suspect until police arrived to make an arrest. The stolen bag was returned to its rightful owner.

Street Vendors Victimized
A man reported his $800 Honda generator stolen from his hot dog cart parked on Lexington Avenue.
On Second Avenue, a man left the counter of his newsstand when two women in front of it distracted him, he said. While his back was turned, a man crept behind the register and removed two cash drawers, making off with $2,300.

Old-Fashioned Smash-and-Grab
In what police have identified as a citywide pattern after a similar incident downtown, a 6-foot-tall man wearing a white or tan jacket smashed the storefront window of a Madison Avenue boutique with a cobblestone early last Wednesday morning. He took 16 leather jackets and three T-shirts, at a total value of $16,995, then got away. The cost of replacing the plate-glass window, according to the store, is $3,000.

Unsuspecting New Englander Robbed
A woman from Massachusetts parked her car on East 76th Street last Wednesday, not realizing until later that she may have left it unlocked. When she returned to check, there was not a scratch on the vehicle but her $100 GPS system was missing from the dashboard and a $300 laptop was gone from the trunk.

No Harmony for
Assaulted DJ
A DJ was loading his equipment into a nightclub around 10:30 p.m. last Sunday when he asked an unknown man to remove his belongings that were in the way. The man responded by punching the unsuspecting DJ in the arm and back, then fleeing the scene.

Man Indicted for
Upper East Side Burglaries
Luis Torres, 50, was indicted last week for a string of burglaries targeting homes on the Upper East Side, Upper West Side and in Midtown. Police discovered large quantities of jewelry and electronics, as well as over 100 keys and cards, in Torres’ apartment upon his arrest. Torres is charged with three counts of burglary in the second degree.

Hotel Thief Admits to High-End Heists
After admitting to stealing cash, jewelry, accessories and electronics from guests at Jumeirah Essex House, the Plaza Hotel, St. Regis Hotel and the London NYC Hotel, James Bennett, 45, pleaded guilty to four counts of burglary in the second degree and one count of grand larceny in the second degree last week. He confessed to attempting to steal employees’ paychecks from the London NYC Hotel before being spotted, then later that day swiping goods from the Plaza and St. Regis. He had previously stolen a Chopard watch and Cartier sunglasses from Jumeirah Essex House.
“Burglary victims lose more than their money, valuables and prized possessions—they also lose their sense of security in their own homes,” said District Attorney Cyrus Vance in a statement. “Thanks to excellent police work and aggressive prosecution, offenders who prey upon New Yorkers are taken off the streets.”

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