After months of countless rim and tire thefts, the 49th Precinct finally caught the pesky thieves red-handed.
In a routine that started towards the end of 2010, a small group of nighttime prowlers stole tires and rims off of imported cars, mainly Hondas, in the 45th and 49th precincts.
The group reportedly would drive up to a car during the early morning, loosen the bolts off the tire rims, then return an hour or more later to take the tires and rims off of the automobiles to resell.
On Sunday, May 1 at 5:22 a.m., officers of the 49th Precinct made the arrests of four men on the corner of Arnow and Wallace avenues in the act of attempting to take the tires off of a 2008 Honda Fit that belonged to Michelle Torres.
Three of the men live within the 47th Precinct and the other lives in the 52nd Precinct. Christopher Slater, 21, Horace Pratt, 23, Conroy Green, 21, and Brandon White, 21, were all arrested on charges of grand larceny in the fourth degree, auto stripping in the third degree, possession of burglar’s tools, petit larceny and possession of stolen property in the fifth degree.
“It was great to finally catch these men,” said 49th Precinct Deputy Inspector Kevin Nicholson. “The communities have been concerned about these robberies for months and it’s great to give the residents some good news because this was a major catch.”
As of March, the 45th Precinct reported 11 cars stripped, all Honda models, and the 49th Precinct had reported similar stripping to a Chevy Camaro.
Councilman Jimmy Vacca was notified of the often occurring robberies and he began to notice the trend quickly growing within his district.
“Once I was notified that these men had been caught I was beyond thrilled that the long effort to catch these individuals had become successful,” Vacca said. “I want to strongly thank the police for sticking with this case over this period of time. We will certainly have a lot of car owners who can rest easier now.”
