Wild Crash Ends With Good Samaritan Chasing, Tackling Armed Hit-And-Run Driver In Brooklyn
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Community police and ordinary citizens teamed up for an arrest after a car went on a terrifying ride through Brooklyn Friday.
Police say the man behind the wheel hit several parked cars before trying to make a run for it.
Authorities say the car was the suspect was driving erratically and refused to stop. Not only was the man driving dangerously, he was carrying a gun as well.
Surveillance video from a Crown Heights convenience store shows pedestrians running for cover as a silver Jaguar tore down Troy Avenue in Friday afternoon.
After hitting several vehicles, the driver ditched the car and took off on foot. He would soon find himself being chased by a brave pedestrian who recorded the pursuit on his cell phone.
That's when the suspect's gun fell out of his pants and landed on the Brooklyn sidewalk. Seconds later, the suspect is pinned to the ground.
Cell phone video recorded by bystanders recorded the man, surrounded by members of the Crown Heights Shmira – a local community police group – and NYPD who promptly arrested the 31-year-old man.
Police later identified the driver as Andy James of Brooklyn. He faces a plethora of charges including reckless endangerment, criminal possession of a weapon, driving while intoxicated, criminal possession of marijuana, leaving the scene of an accident, and possession of a forged weapon (the car).
The 71st precinct in Brooklyn thanked the good Samaritans in a tweet of the suspect's handgun.
"Friday is a busy day. Everyone is getting ready for Shabbos, walking in and out of the shul. I'm happy no one was here at the time the guy drove past," Yossi Chayo said.
Chayo told CBS2's Matt Kozar he was preparing for Friday services when the incident happened.
He says he's thankful for the mystery man who tackled the fleeing driver.
"I think it was amazing, very brave, that he chased the guy down. Even after seeing the gun, he kept on going," Chayo added.
