Well, That's One Way To Stop A Thief

2006_06_24_bag.jpg

A wanted purse-snatcher was busted by the NYPD yesterday after his bike was run over by a car as he was mid-snatch.

The thief, who was not identified, had just stolen a woman's pocketbook in Chelsea and was making his getaway on his bicycle when a nearby driver, Peter Welsh, heard the victim screaming "He's got my purse!" Welsh swerved to try to block the bike from getting away and inadvertently ran the thief over. He is now in St. Vincents Hospital in critical condition.

Which reminds us: there have been a bunch of nasty bicycle accidents lately so please, even if you are a purse-stealer, we can't stress enough the importance of wearing a helmet when biking in Gotham.

I Heart NY Bag by tobyleah via Contribute.

Email This Entry


Comments (5) [rss]

I bet the car driver will be sued by the theif now for his injuries (that is if survives).....

user-pic

Natural selection at work!

The thief should sue the driver. Regardless of the fact that he was in the middle of committing a crime, the driver committed assault. People need to start realizing that when a car is driven agressively it becomes a weapon.

user-pic

I think it's disgusting that the cyclist will likely sue the driver of the car, but, folks, ain't America grand?

He wasn't trying to kill the thief, he just wanted to cut him off. Dangerous, I admit. Perhaps more than a little stupid. But I have no sympathy for the thief. Har har.

Post a comment (Comment Policy)

Tips

Get your daily dose of New York first thing in the morning from our weekday newsletter, now in beta.

About Gothamist

Gothamist is a website about New York. More

Editor: Jen Chung
Publisher: Jake Dobkin

Newsmap

newsmap.jpg

Contribute

Latest Tip:

The NYS Unemployment website is down, and the phone number has a permanent busy signal.
[more]

Latest Photo:

Subscribe

Use an RSS reader to stay up to date with the latest news and posts from Gothamist.

All Our RSS