Monday, May 18, 2015

Firefighter chases down alleged phone thief


Firefighter Kevin Ruiz of Engine 28 on East Second Street busted an alleged phone thief today.

WABC 7 has the story:

"She had her bag completely open and a gentleman snuck up behind her and he went into her bag and he took her phone," Ruiz said.

"At first we thought it was a joke," said Commissioner Sandy Guzman, FDNY.

But the woman wasn't laughing.

"That's when Firefighter Ruiz started screaming at the guy and tells him, 'Hey give the phone back,'" Guzman said.

Possibly stunned at being caught in the act, the suspect quickly gave the phone back, but then took off.

Ruiz was not letting him get away so fast, and chased the man two avenues and about six blocks, where his fire truck caught up with him.

The story doesn't mention where the theft took place ... but Ruiz, who was food shopping with his fellow firefighters, caught up with the unnamed suspect on East 13th Street near Avenue B.

Updated 5-19

CBS New York reports that the incident occurred on First Avenue between East 13th Street and East 14th Street.
at

5 comments:

  1. PinchMay 18, 2015 at 10:51 PM

    It's good to share these types of stories about people/a community looking out for one another; it's also the anti people taking out their phones and simply just videoing a bad thing happening phenomenon (yes, I recognize video can be helpful/serve a purpose). Anyway, job well done by this firefighter

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousMay 19, 2015 at 4:53 AM

    Well done and a tip of the hat

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousMay 19, 2015 at 5:28 AM

    CLOSE YOUR PURSE SILLY!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousMay 19, 2015 at 5:51 PM

    Congratulations to Mr. Ruiz for his good deed. He is even kind enough to call the perpetrator a "gentleman", although clearly said perp's behavior earns no such honorific.

    Well done.

    - East Villager

    P.S. Telling someone to "close your purse" just blames the victim. Not helpful.

    ReplyDelete
  5. les nativeMay 24, 2015 at 3:04 AM

    Steal from the rich!

    ReplyDelete

Your remarks and lively debates are welcome, whether supportive or critical of the views herein. Your articulate, well-informed remarks that are relevant to an article are welcome.

However, commentary that is intended to "flame" or attack, that contains violence, racist comments and potential libel will not be published. Facts are helpful.

If you'd like to make personal attacks and libelous claims against people and businesses, then you may do so on your own social media accounts. Also, comments predicting when a new business will close ("I give it six weeks") will not be approved.