Sex-assault attempt
A man attempted to sexually assault an elderly woman on Norfolk St. behind P.S. 20 at about 4 a.m. on Thurs., Nov. 20, police said. The suspect fled when people who were on the street at the time heard the victim shout and came to investigate, said Deputy Inspector Frank Dwyer, commanding officer of the Seventh Precinct. The suspect was described only as a male Hispanic in his 20s, about 5 feet 4 inches or 5 feet 5 inches and weighing about 150 pounds.
Although some reports said the woman was Chinese and was collecting bottles and that the man had a small goatee, Dwyer said he couldn’t confirm the woman’s ethnicity or if the suspect had that sort of facial hair.
Dwyer said the incident was not part of a pattern or a trend. Police are asking anyone with information on the incident to phone the Police Department’s Special Victims Unit at 212-860-6857.
Clayton Patterson, a Lower East Side documentarian and gallery owner who lives on Essex St., a block away from the crime scene, has been working hard to bring attention to the incident and raise awareness of sexual assault and rape in the neighborhood. His efforts — including alerting Community Board 3 — ultimately resulted in police putting up posters on Norfolk St. on Sunday encouraging residents to report violent crime.
“You don’t always have to see the crime,” Patterson said. “You can see the person running from the scene and put the pieces together.”
Seek holdup trio
Police are seeking three young men involved in the armed holdup of two jewelry stores on Canal St. in the past two weeks. The suspects walked into one of the stores at 271 Canal St. east of Broadway at 10:37 a.m. on Sat., Nov. 15. One of them pulled a revolver from his waistband and demanded jewelry, but the trio fled without taking anything. They entered the second store at 185A Canal St. near Mott St. at 10:50 a.m. Fri., Nov. 21, where one of them pulled a gun and the other two shoved jewelry into their backpacks; police said the armed man fired a round into the lock that had closed behind them in order to make their escape. Police are asking anyone with information to phone 800-577-TIPS (8477) or text message to CRIMES (374637) and then TIPS577.
Jacket attack
Police arrested one of three or four teenagers who punched and robbed a 15-year-old boy at 12:20 p.m. Wed., Nov. 19, at the corner of Sixth Ave. and Broome St., where two high schools are located across Broome St. from each other. Kevin Williams, 19, of 451 E. 102nd St., was charged with second-degree assault, robbery and possession of stolen property. The other suspects were not apprehended. Williams punched the victim, pulled his jacket over his head and fled with it before he was arrested, according to the charges. He was being held in lieu of bail pending a court appearance this week, according to the Manhattan D.A.’s office.
Fire truck crash
Two fire trucks speeding to what turned out to be a false alarm in the Village crashed at 6 p.m. Sat., Nov. 22, on Seventh Ave. South at W. 10th St. Five firefighters were seriously injured and taken to St. Vincent’s Hospital, and seven were taken to Bellevue Hospital with lesser injuries. The Emergency Service truck of Squad 18 struck a light pole after the Ladder 12 truck slammed into it at the intersection. The Squad 18 truck burst into flames and a third company of firefighters responded to it.
Bad guests
Susan Peterson, 40, was drinking at a friend’s apartment at 310 W. 14th St. on Saturday morning, Nov. 15, and flew into a rage when her friend refused to give her one more drink, according to police. The friend told officers the suspect smashed dishes and defaced the front door. Charged with criminal mischief and resisting arrest, Peterson was freed pending a Feb. 9 court appearance.
A resident of 240 W. 16th St. told police that he had invited a stranger to hang out with him at his apartment on Friday night, Nov. 14. He fell asleep during the night and woke up shortly before 9 a.m. Saturday to find that the stranger, whom he knew only as Matthew, had stolen his Mac laptop computer.
Female mugging duo
A resident of Greene St. near Canal St. told police she was walking home at 11:40 p.m. Tues., Nov. 11, when one of two women grabbed her in a chokehold. The accomplice said, “I have a knife, just give up the purse,” took $140 from the victim’s purse and both suspects fled, according to police.
However, the victim ran after them, caught up with the woman who had taken her money and demanded it back. The suspect punched the victim, but police arrived, arrested Hannibal Ebony, 18, and charged her with robbery. The other woman was not apprehended.
Hit by Cherokee
Police arrested Joseph Nemecek, 26, at 3:37 a.m. Sun., Nov. 23, after his 1997 Grand Cherokee struck a woman trying to hail a cab at Washington and W. 13th Sts. Nemecek was charged with driving while intoxicated after he registered .174 on an alcohol breath test at the Manhattan South D.W.I. center on Pitt St. The legal threshold is .08. The victim, 31, of Manhattan, was with two friends at the time, and was treated at St. Vincent’s Hospital for cuts on her forehead and bruises on her torso.
Hit by Blazer
A Chelsea man, 71, told police he was crossing Eighth Ave. from east to west at 16th St. at 7:15 p.m. Sat., Nov. 15, when a northbound white Chevrolet Blazer sped by and clipped him. The victim was treated at St. Vincent’s Hospital and released, police said.
Wild club fight
Police arrested three suspects for assaulting and menacing a Brooklyn man, 26, in front of the Olive Tree, 117 MacDougal St., at 10:50 p.m. on Wed., Nov. 19. The victim told police that one suspect, identified as Nicholas Alverson, punched him in the face inside the club and was ejected by security. The three returned and waited for the victim outside the club, where one of them menaced him with a red-handled box cutter and the other two picked up the brass stanchions of the club’s velvet rope and swung them at the victim. Two of the suspects were arrested in a cab near the scene, and the box cutter was found tucked under the back seat. The third suspect fled on foot and was arrested a block away.
Gucci getaway
The owner of Patina, a boutique at 451 Broome St. at Mercer St., told police on Nov. 18 that a stranger had walked into her shop at 6 p.m. on Oct. 28 and made off with a Gucci shoulder bag, a silver necklace and three coats with a total value of $3,075. She said she ran after the thief but failed to catch him. She did not say why she delayed reporting the incident.
Albert Amateau
