See this story at BrooklynDaily.com.
By Kelly Haight
Brooklyn Daily
70th Precinct
Flatbush—Midwood
Basement burning
A 66-year-old man was arrested for lighting a fire in a residential building on E. 17th Street on May 25.
A witness told police he smelled smoke in the building at 4 pm and found the suspect in the basement burning his mail in a bucket. The resident asked the suspect what he was doing and said there are little kids in the building, to which the suspect allegedly responded, “the smoke will not kill the little kids.”
Police and the fire department were called when the area, with a dozen people inside, was filled with smoke.
Kids these days
Police arrested a 16-year-old boy who they say stole an elderly woman’s pocketbook on the corner of E. Seventh Street on May 2.
The victim told police she was near Avenue H at 4:50 pm when the teen tried to steal the bag, but she wouldn’t give it up without a fight. He dragged her into the streets before finally ripping it out of her hands and running away, according to the victim.
The woman suffered several minor injures during the struggle.
Two-for-one
A 16-year-old boy was arrested on May 24 for swiping a cellphone right out of a man’s hand on Newkirk Avenue.
The victim said he was near Coney Island Avenue when the teen stole the phone. He told police he grabbed his phone back and saw the adolescent had marijuana on him.
The boy faces larceny and drug possession charges, according to police.
— Kelly Haight