Six Bronx teens are facing criminal charges, after an SUV which had been left running and unattended in Times Square showed up in The Bronx.

 

Police said the incident unfolded at 11:21 p.m. on Thursday, May 12, outside 6 Times Square at West 42nd Street and Broadway in Manhattan, when a 45-year-old male driver reported that his white 2022 Toyota Highlander SUV went missing after he left it running and unattended for just “a few minutes.”

 

The following day, Friday, May 13, at 4:50 p.m., officers from the 52nd Precinct in The Bronx observed six individuals driving in a similar, alleged stolen vehicle that police said had no license plates. Officers were able to block the vehicle in and apprehend the suspects, without incident, outside 2477 Valentine Avenue in the Fordham Heights section of The Bronx.

 

Police arrested Roldy Mendez, 18, of the Cross Bronx Expressway; Lindsay Oneil, 18, of Wallace Avenue and Saquan Dominique, 19, of East 197th Street, along with three male minors, two 15-year-olds and one 16-year-old. All were charged with criminal possession of stolen property and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.

 

According to police radio transmissions at the time of the incident, officers from the 52nd Precinct spotted the vehicle and began following it from Kingsbridge Heights into Fordham Manor and into the 46th precinct.

 

The vehicle proceeded westbound on West 183rd Street and headed north on Valentine Avenue towards Fordham Road, where it was blocked in and stopped.

 

One of the pursuing officers was heard, saying, “Be advised…no lights, no sirens – let’s just try and block them in.” A moment later, an officer with the same voice is heard saying, “At Valentine and Fordham, if you could just block traffic off right there. Whatever RMP [police vehicle] is right there on Valentine, block it off, block it off!”

 

In the background, another officer is heard yelling, “Get out! Get out!” as the dispatcher is then heard responding, “Is everything all right over there?”

 

The first officer is later heard returning to the vehicle and telling his dispatcher, “You can make it a ‘no further.’ Everyone is in custody – just need more cars to transport please.”

 

Attempts to reach the three older, identified teens for comment via their addresses and through social media were unsuccessful.

 

According to the latest NYPD crime statistics, Grand Larceny Auto crimes in The Bronx are up 64.8 percent year-to-date compared to 2021, with 1,490 incidents reported across the borough, compared to 904 during the same timeframe last year. In the 52nd precinct, Grand Larceny Auto crimes in The Bronx are up 52.4 percent year-to-date compared to 2021, with 96 incidents reported across the borough, compared to 63 during the same timeframe last year.

 

 

Meanwhile, in the 50th precinct, Grand Larceny Auto crimes in The Bronx are up 243.8 percent year-to-date compared to 2021, with 110 incidents reported across the borough, compared to 32 during the same timeframe last year. In the 46th precinct, Grand Larceny Auto crimes in The Bronx are up 102.4 percent year-to-date compared to 2021, with 83 incidents reported across the borough, compared to 41 during the same timeframe last year.

 

A person arrested and charged with a crime is deemed innocent unless and until convicted in a court of law.

 

*Síle Moloney contributed to this story.