Police have arrested the man whose escape from police custody in October prompted NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton to call the cops involved "an embarrassment." Officers caught up to Gerald Brooks, 39, at an apartment building on Bedell Street in Rochdale Village, Queens on Tuesday night. They brought him back to the 75th Precinct station house in East New York, near the scene of his October 20th escape.
Cops say Brooks was arrested on a domestic violence warrant at about 5:30 a.m. on October 20th, and that with his hands cuffed behind his back, he body-checked an officer and sprinted away down Scheffield Avenue. Bratton called the sergeant and two detectives involved "an embarrassment to themselves, the unit, this department." The New York Times reports that those officers were disciplined, but officials would not elaborate. The NYPD's press office did not respond to an emailed request for more information about the cops' status.
Brooks was the fifth prisoner to escape the NYPD's grip since June 23rd. Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce said a Crime Stoppers tip led to his arrest.
Brooks is in court today to face a felony escape charge as well as the eight previous felony criminal contempt charges and 55 misdemeanor harassment, sex abuse, and assault charges. Those charges stemmed from a July 10th incident that led to a warrant being issued for his arrest.
