Grand St. fire
Fire broke at 319-321 Grand St. at Orchard St. around 3 a.m. Sat., Dec. 3, and went to two alarms, bringing three companies to the scene. Firefighters brought the blaze under control in about an hour and residents were allowed to return to retrieve possessions. There was extensive damage and the cause of the fire remains to be determined. But the five-story 1886 cast-iron building was said to be structurally sound. Built for Ridley & Sons Department Store, the building is under consideration for landmark status.
Burglary arrest
Police arrested Jorge Molina, 22, on Nov. 20 and charged him with breaking into Souen, the restaurant at 28 E. 13th St., around 4:23 a.m. Nov. 14 and stealing about $670 from various cash registers. Surveillance video shows Molina in the place at the time rummaging though the cash registers and kicking down a door, according to the complaint filed with the Manhattan district attorney. Molina was easy to spot because of a bird tattoo on his face. Police are still investigating a possible accomplice in the Souen burglary.
Burger-bash verdict
After 11 days of testimony, a grand jury on Fri., Dec. 2, decided not to indict Rayon McIntosh, 31, the cashier at the McDonald’s at W. Third St. and Sixth Ave. for assaulting two woman on Wed., Oct. 11, of last year. He claimed the women leaped over the counter and cursed and spit at him because he examined a $50 bill they had paid him. A YouTube video shows McIntosh picking up a metal rod and beating the two women.
McIntosh is on parole from an 11-year prison sentence for manslaughter. He told the Daily News he was contemplating a civil lawsuit against McDonald’s for not having security guards on hand during the incident.
Seek Village cat burglars
Police are looking for two men wanted in a series of Village apartment burglaries via windows at fire escapes. The first incident was at 4 p.m. Oct. 18 in an apartment on W. Eighth St. Over the following two weeks the pair hit apartments on Bleecker, W. 10th and W. 11th Sts. and Greenwich Ave., making off with electronics and cash. On Oct. 27 they broke into an apartment on Greenwich Ave. at 12:15 a.m. while the residents were sleeping, and stole a PlayStation, a watch and DVDs.
Wandering shoplifts
Two men who were observed walking in and out of Soho boutiques on Friday afternoon Dec. 2 were arrested at 1:15 p.m. in Palmer Trading Co. trying to walk out of the shop at 137 Sullivan St. between Prince and Houston Sts. without paying for three sweaters, police said. The suspects, Tracey McKeever, 23, and Darwell Jones, 24, both wanted on previous warrants, were also in possession of stolen Prada sunglasses and an iPhone, police said.
Fare-beating robber
Jonathan Valena, 31, was arrested at 4:35 a.m. Sun., Dec. 4, on the southbound platform of the Seventh Ave. subway station at Christopher St. after he jumped a turnstile and attacked a 22-year-old victim and attempted to steal his cell phone, police said. The suspect had two glassine bags, one with crack cocaine and the other with marijuana, in his pocket in addition to marijuana and crack pipes, police said.
Kicked out window
Police arrested Ovalle Quiros, 32, who gave an Orlando, Florida, address, for criminal mischief for kicking out a door window at 68 Christopher St. shortly after 9 p.m. Tues., Nov. 29. Quiros was yelling and cursing at the time, police said.
Friday night mayhem
Sasha Washington, 25, was arrested at 12:35 a.m. Fri., Dec. 2, for punching a man, 51, in the head in front of 108 Seventh Ave. South.
Police arrested a 23-year-old woman, Caresse Singh, in the crowded Comedy Cellar club, 117 MacDougal St., at 11:20 p.m. Fri., Dec. 2, for reckless endangerment for pulling the fire alarm in the place.
Resisting arrest
Thomas Ossolinsky, 21, was charged with obstructing government administration at 4:28 a.m. Sun., Dec. 4, for pushing and shoving police who were breaking up a brawl in front of 409 W. 13th St. Ossolinsky was also charged with resisting arrest for grabbing and holding on to an officer’s coat to avoid being handcuffed.
iPhone muggers
Transit police arrested two suspects, one 15 and the other 16 years old, around 8:15 p.m. Wed., Nov. 30, for pushing a woman victim, 31, to the floor in the IND station on Sixth Ave. at 14th St. and stealing her iPhone. A third suspect, identified as Rafael Hernandez, 17, is also being sought.
Sporty shoplifters
Two women walked into the Moncler boutique at 90 Prince St. near Mercer St. around 6:40 p.m. Sun., Nov. 27, took a jacket with a fur collar valued at $2,100 from a rack, and walked out with it in a shopping bag without paying, police said.
Car break-in
A woman visiting from Honesdale, Pennsylvania, parked her car in front of 50 Vandam St. at Varick St. around 12:05 a.m. Sat., Dec. 13, closed the windows and locked the door and went to a party in the neighborhood. She returned at 4:30 a.m. to find a window broken and her backpack — containing her cellphone, laptop computer, jewelry and her wallet with credit cards, all with a total value of $2,760 — had been stolen.
Shady Chanel thief
A woman entered the Chanel boutique at 139 Spring St. near Wooster St. around 4:52 p.m. Sat., Nov. 26, took a handbag valued at $3,900 from a display, tucked it into a bag she was carrying and walked out without paying, police said. A surveillance camera taped the theft but it was too far away for an identifiable image of the suspect, police said.
Bag bummer
A woman visiting from Ontario went shoe shopping at Steve Madden, 529 Broadway near Spring St., around 4:50 p.m. Fri., Nov. 25, put her bag on the floor next to her to try on a pair of shoes, and discovered five minutes later that the bag was stolen.
Albert Amateau
