Mother’s Day Arsonist on the Run

By DAVID GREENE

Police are looking for a clumsy troublemaker who allegedly attempted to set fire to a local tavern this past Mother’s Day, but accidentally set his cohort ablaze, say witnesses. NYPD units from the 52nd Precinct and members of FDNY’s Battalion 15 responded to a report of a fire at the Woodlawn Café at 3700 Bainbridge Ave., by the Woodlawn Cemetery train stop at 9 p.m. on May 8. NYPD spokeswoman Arlene Muñoz said police were looking for the “unknown person who started a fire intentionally to an occupied building… and the case is being investigated by the Fire Marshal.” Witnesses, who

By DAVID CRUZ

POLICE ARE SEARCHING for this masked thief wanted for the brazen bank robbery at the Chase Bank at 3408 Jerome Ave. on May 7 just after 9 a.m. Police say the thief, wearing a mask, waited 10 minutes inside the bank before approaching a teller, brandishing a black gun from his waistband and demanding cash. After getting the money, the thief fled. Police describe the suspect as approximately 30 years old, medium complexion and weighing 180 pounds. He was last seen wearing a red hoodie, blue jeans and black sneakers. Anyone with information is encouraged to call the Crime Stoppers

By DAVID CRUZ

On his third day as the newest commanding officer of the 52nd Precinct, Deputy Inspector Peter Fiorillo emphasized the relationship between community and police can only strengthen and “better the community.” “It’ll also probably make the officers’ work a little bit easier and more efficient,” said Fiorillo, addressing residents at the latest 52nd Precinct Community Council meeting, a public forum where residents voice crime-related concerns with the precinct’s top officers. At the meeting, Fiorillo got a taste of everyday issues happening in the Five-Two, a stationhouse covering Norwood, Bedford Park, Kingsbridge, University Heights and parts of Fordham. Crime has

It seems ages that I’ve been cooped up in this small dark wet space. I don’t even know how I got here in the first place. But the longer I’m here, the less room I seem to have. I can hardly get around. I used to be able to stretch out, move around, punch, kick, do whatever I felt like, but I can’t anymore. I used to like it here, no one bothered me. I ate and slept whenever I wanted. I had no one to answer to. I could hear light pleasant sounds even though I couldn’t see very

This year’s lineup of honorees in the Bronx Walk of Fame includes an actor, animator/director, author, and dance pioneer. Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and The Bronx Tourism Council, hailing May 5 as the start of the 11-day, 45th annual Bronx Week, announced the new roster of inductees. The honorees are actor Vincent Pastore, animator and director Peter Sohn, author Arlene Alda, and dance pioneer Eduardo Vilaro. The quartet was chosen primarily because of their roots to the Bronx. They will be officially inducted into the Bronx Walk of Fame as part of Bronx Week, a program celebrating the borough’s finer

For anyone who’s lived in the Bronx long enough, they’ll learn it can take an insane amount of time to fix a quality of life problem. So if it’s a busted fire hydrant, perpetually loud neighbors, an overpopulated cat colony, or a lost coin (it’s been known to happen), resolve is almost never instantaneous, a curse that bedevils anyone making a complaint through the city’s 311 hotline. The system, implemented in 2003 during the Bloomberg years, serves as the city’s official customer service line, though that depiction is a stretch, depending on who you talk to. It functions more as

Volunteers make the difference at St. Patrick’s Home Rehabilitation and Health Care Center located just at the tip of Norwood. We are blessed to have dedicated volunteers who give of themselves and their time to our beloved residents. On April 16, the home celebrated and recognized their Volunteers for National Volunteer Week with a Mass of Thanksgiving and brunch. A wonderful time was shared by all who attended and participated. The home is always seeking new volunteers to share their time, treasure and talent serving the residents and the facility. Volunteering in a nursing home can be a rewarding, life

By DAVID GREENE

This week we asked readers how the major and local news outlets are doing with regard to coverage of the Bronx. When I watch the local channels, I don’t really feel like they cover the Bronx, but they look at all the other boroughs like Staten Island and Manhattan, with Manhattan being the largest business district. But when I look at papers like the Norwood News, I do get that focus and it’s on education and community development, business and local community leaders and you don’t get that from the big broadcast stations. Leon Wentt Bedford Park I don’t feel like

By DANIELA BEASLEY

The Bronx Youth Empowerment Program (YEP) rang in their 10th anniversary with its yearly Youth Speaks event on April 20 at the Richard R. Green School auditorium. The event was complete, with several performances leading into a panel discussion to make up this year’s theme of excelling in life. Youth Speaks is hosted by Bronx YEP in partnership with Councilman Andy King, founded in that same auditorium by King and his wife Neva Shillingford-King. They developed the Youth Empowerment program after the Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Club closed down, which left around 60 kids with nowhere to go