Corner of 90th and Columbus, the location of the fruit vendor.
By Hannah Reale
There were two violent incidents on 90th Street this past Saturday.
In the morning, a fruit vendor on 90th and Columbus Avenue was robbed and assaulted, according to police. The 50-year-old man reported to the police that the robbers took $215 from him. The 24th precinct is currently looking for four young black males, one of whom is approximately 6 feet tall and 20 years old. No arrests have been made.
Site of the fight on 90th and Broadway.
Later that evening, around 7:45 p.m., a group of boys and young men stole candy from a newsstand and rode off on their bikes, according to multiple passers-by who witnessed the incident. The man working at the newsstand chased the group on foot and dragged one of the minors to the ground on the southeast corner of 90th street and Broadway. He tussled with the boy, eventually pinning him to the ground. Another male from the group hit the man over the head with his bike, causing the man to bleed, said witnesses. The group of boys rode off on their bikes. When emergency services arrived, the man was taken in an ambulance, and one of the other boys returned.
The two boys at the scene, evidently minors, were handcuffed and taken into a police car. One woman who witnessed the entire event reported that the pinned boy had cried out that he had asthma, which caused her particular concern, and she started filming the event. She also reported that the man loudly said that the boys had stolen from the stand several times, and the boy admitted to stealing a piece of candy while pinned. So far, no charges have been levied and no arrests have been made.
Here’s a tip – if you have asthma, don’t commit violent robberies.
Also, if you have asthma maybe you shouldn’t be stealing candy.
It makes more sense to steal something healthy.
Apples are supposed to be good for asthma.
Anyway, I salute this vendor for defending himself.
It’s so disgusting that these low life thugs are so lazy they rather rob someone than actually work. That fruit stand guy is really cool. I prey the cops get these scum buckets
* pray
but I see what you did thee and I approve
thumbs up
DO NOT STEAL PERIOD
What is it with groups of boys? This is not socioeconomic…this is cultural. Awhile back there was a group of 4-5 boys who spent several months causing trouble at the Dunkin Donuts on the same block…harrassing staff etc usually in the early to mid evenings.
I’m curious – how do you know it is not socioeconomic? And by cultural, do you mean African-American culture general, the culture of poverty, the culture of New York, or the culture to which this may be a reaction?
This is terrible behavior, and it is terrible that these people were hurt. I hope that the people who did it are caught and punished. ANd I hope more thought goes into what leads people to do this so we can cut it off at the root. I’d prefer we do it without imposing a death sentence on a young person for a non-capital crime, such as could result from being tackled with asthma.
Would you still babble these talking points if YOU were bashed over the head with a bicycle, as this poor fruit vendor was? When do LIBERAL EXCUSES stop? Is rape ok if you’re poor and a person of color? How about murder?
How do you know that the perpetrator in fact suffered from asthma? How do you know that it wasn’t a ruse to distract the fruit vendor (whom he had just robbed) while one of his co-assailants bashed the poor man in the head with a bicycle?
Unfortunately, many times the judicial system does not take this kind of violent criminality seriously, and doesn’t recognize that criminal acts such as these spread like a virus, and result in even more intensely violent acts by the same criminal perpetrators over time.
I personally don’t give a damn what happens to a criminal during the commission of a violent, strong-arm robbery. There are ways to deal with this kind criminality, by addressing the specific bad acts of specific bad actors such as these. Sooner or later, they will rob or assault or otherwise ‘disrespect’ the wrong person within their own community, and the culture will take care of itself. Think: intersection of ‘dog eat dog’ and ‘law of the (asphalt) jungle’. I have it on good medical authority that high velocity hot lead injection treatments will terminate (if not cure) symptoms of asthma.
Yes, the legal term ‘assumption of risk’ comes to mind. As does the scientific theory of Darwinism.
For those of you who don’t catch my drift, look it up. No pity for these criminals. Period. Don’t talk to me about socioeconomic whatever when your kid gets stabbed or shot or worse.
And I’m a Liberal, so there….:) But when it comes to law and order I don’t mess around. Book’em Dan-o!
great screen name Bernie!
It may well be socioeconomic — as in kids who may be poor, under supervised, or with any number of challenges. It may also be socioeconomic as in the “nice boys” who go to the local private school whose parents don’t worry about what they do before curfew because they are just hanging with other kids from school.
Or such as could result from slamming a bicycle into someone’s head! If you initiate a crime, you don’t get to then whinge about getting hurt during your apprehension.
The usual–Columbus from 90th to 95th. 25th Precinct never around other than stopping at the 7/11 for snacks.
that’s not true simple!!!!…I usually see them at the dunkin donuts on 89th & bway
I am surprised this doesn’t happen more often – there are several drug dealers who walk the block and do their deals at 90th and Columbus. They have gotten bolder over the past few years and the police never do anything!!!!!!!!!!!
It is true that groups of young males of all colors and socioeconomic groups are known to inspire each other to do commit stupid behaviors that they would never do alone. Ask my affluent white nephew in suburban Westchester!
You want to see drug dealing 24/7? Empty glassines on the sidewalk on the weekends? Check out 104th between Columbus and Amsterdam. It’s New Jack City.
Disgusting!! Asthma or not they need to be strictly punished so this doesn’t keep happening. These kids are little scum bags and need some serious lessons, not just a slap on the wrist.
Oh, please. They’ll both make a fortune from the City’s settlement of the lawsuit they will bring for false arrest and police brutality.
Odd that the woman showed concern for the thug with asthma but NOT for the man who was hit over the head with a bike ( causing him to bleed ).
I was thinking the same. Also, surprised no arrests were made even though the teens returned? Why?
Are you sure “odd” in the right word Jean? I prefer “disgusting”.
Moving from 64th street and West End to 104th and Broadway has been like moving to another country. The homeless, the drug addicts, the garbage and the noise are disconcerting. And our small 2 bedroom is not much cheaper than our former doorman 1 bedroom apt. Dumb move on my part.
This is hyperbole. I live on 104th and WEA, and have been living there for nearly a decade. I will agree that over the past two years, there has been a regression to more what it was like years ago — “street people”, begging, loitering — particularly in front of McDonalds, which has been scaffolded for over a year now. But, it is far from unsafe and overwhelming. I have never encountered any problems, fights, threats etc.
I live right by you Jim. I mentioned all this a few months ago on WSR and I was accused of “making things up”, and “grossly exaggerating”, as well as being a racist. Wait until there is another shooting or stabbing in our area Jim, then you’ll really regret moving to this area.
Agreed. We moved from the 70s to the upper 80s and we hardly ever go north. Too dangerous.
I go there all the time, and so do my kids and my friends (including the ones that live there). While these types of violent events are terrible, and obviously are not something anyone wants, it hardly makes the entire place so unsafe that you cannot go there.
Well, when you present things in hysterical, overly dramatic, and racist ways, it’s amazing what kinds of responses you will get.
No! I am heartbroken. We live on 90th and had been so excited to see the fruit vendor on our corner. We had been making an effort to buy our produce from him instead of D’Ags, which is ridiculously overpriced. Ugh, I hope he is okay!
Shouldn’t we all be happy he was stealing fruit instead of 64 ounce sodas? Wasn’t that the goal? BTW the “asthma” claim is BS…it’s an Eric Garner defense and since we saw how the cops got off on that one I’d have to say poor choice to steal and poor choice to look to get out of a chokehold.
Sorry the fruit vendor got robbed. Considering that area has almost no police presence, it’s not surprising that petty crimes are on the rise again.
NYC has 35,000 uniformed policemen. where are they?? There are more policemen than the total number of arrests in the city. It means that there lots of policemen/wmen who do not arrest anybody during a year. Where are they hiding?
all them boys hang around the plaza. also know as steven wise towers , all day long smoke weed , don’t go to school, cops are call , nothing happens
Most of then are from 74West92 Street or 120 West 94th Street, God Help Us!!!