Posted on 04/12/2024 8:14:59 PM PDT by grundle
JAMAICA, Queens (WABC) -- The 16-year-old suspect caught on video shoving a senior down the stairs of her church in Queens during a violent mugging is now being charged with robbing and assaulting her.
The teen was taken to the hospital after he took off his shirt off in the precinct holding cell and wrapped it around his neck. Police say he was taken to the hospital for evaluation, and once he is released, he will be arraigned.
Despite being arraigned as an adult, the Queens District Attorneys Office says they will not be identifying the 16-year-old because of his age.
He has been arrested nine times in Queens as an adolescent offender since August 2023. Eight of those arrests involved robberies and the ninth was criminal possession of stolen property.
The teen was arrested Thursday on charges including robbery, assault, grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property.
The attack happened Sunday morning outside St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in Jamaica Hills. The victim, a 68-year-old mother of two named Irene Tahliambouris, was heading to service when she was attacked.
Surveillance video shows the attacker run in front of the victim, as she walks up the steps to the church entrance, and violently shove her, sending her falling backwards. She suffered a fractured skull and black eye, but she is stable in the ICU.
After the assault, the suspect grabbed Tahliambouris' purse with her car keys and cellphone inside.
He also allegedly stole her 2006 Nissan Altima, which police recovered overnight on Tuesday, approximately 3.5 miles away from the church. Police were able to pull a fingerprint from the recovered car.
The victim's family posted on social media, saying in part: "criminals feel comfortable doing things to helpless people because the laws in our state do not hold them accountable."
Father Konstantions Kalogridis says he and the parishioners at the church are relieved that a suspect is in custody.
"There were no words to express you know, the shock and the surprise to see one of my parishioners, a simple, humble lady going to church," he said. "She was almost ready to open the door of the church."
Harry Panagiotopoulos says the attack rattled the entire Greek community in Queens. He says it's the lack of action following brutal crimes that continues to put communities in danger.
"We have Greek Easter coming up as well. It's on the 5th of May, my grandmother doesn't want to go to church and I'm sure many grandmothers don't want to go to church, they're afraid to go to church, what a shame," Panagiotopoulos said.
The victim's family said she is doing much better. She is still in the hospital but can now recognize people and speak and they hope she will be able to go home soon.
The teen is being investigated in other neighborhood crimes, including an attempted robbery of an elderly person. In addition to the church attack, he is being charged with an unrelated incident three days earlier where he allegedly stole another woman's car.
“arrested 9 times since last summer”
RE: I’m thinkin’ all this soft on crime and defund police ain’t working out too well.
Agree.
The vigilantes of the Old West solved the problem of corrupt towns run by the wealthy bankers and railroad owners who dictated to the wimpy sheriffs. While gangs of rough mannered hooligans shot at people in the street and grabbed women.
A lot like today. A lot.
Really, really difficult for him to maintain his status as “basically a good boy” with that record. Except to his mom.
Aspiring rapper, perhaps?
RE: aspiring rapper
I pushed an old white I knocked down
and now all the cops got a frown
I just felt like taking some cash
Cause my weed was real low in my stash
I don’t give a crap for your law
I just stole a purse that I saw
So all of you just take a hike
Cause I always will do what I like.
He seems to have no conscience. Maybe he’s sociopath, or just a bad seed. Whatever his issue is, he needs to be locked up before he kills someone.
Save Thy people, O Lord,
and bless Thine inheritance.
Grant victory to Thy Church over her enemies,
and protect Thy people by Thy Holy Cross!
Pinged because the scene of this horrific crime was the St. Demetrios Orthodox Church and the victim was a parishioner headed for Liturgy.
He needs to be "transitioned" into becoming incapable of spawning.
😆
Used to not care but now it’s been open season after Soetero, then Floyd, no millions of illegals and ...as I said, open season, diagnosed by the FBI/DHS as extremist, white Christian Nationalists.
No conspiracy, just the truth.
The New York Post is the only U.S. news source that has published his name.
In the future, should we witness such a crime, we will not call the police. We will summarily execute the bleep and hang his corpse from the bell tower out front".
The odds are the victim voted Democrat. Queens voted for Biden 69% Trump 30%.
In ‘20 democrats cheated in swing states—that’s a certainty. What would make anyone believe that democrats wouldn’t routinely try to boost the total democrat popular vote (and embarrass the other side) by padding their numbers in strongholds like New York?
If that were my grahndmother (when they let him out again), he’d go down.
Another DISGRACE to decent American citizens by the DemocRATS!! ...imho
Too late. I read on another site, earlier today, that the 16 year old yoof had toped himself. Don’t know if it’s true.
They don’t have to in NY. It takes resources like money and manpower to cheat and they won’t do it if they’re going to win anyway.
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