From this mornings Daily News:
A career car thief accused of stuffing a badly beaten man in the trunk of a BMW narrowly escaped capture in Long Island hours before victim was found in Manhattan, police officials said.
Barion Blake, 30, was still being sought Friday.
A Nassau County cop saw Blake and another man switching license plates on the stolen BMW about 2:30 a.m. Wednesday. The cop walked up to the beemer and Blake jumped into the driver's seat and peeled off.
NYPD Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said the Nassau cop pursued the BMW westbound on the Jericho Turnpike and then south on the Cross Island Parkway. The officer lost control of his squad car and it flipped over.
The suspect was briefly in the clear.
Hours later the BMW slammed into a taxi in Inwood, and the driver, believed to be Blake, ran off. The taxi driver called police who spotted a bullet hole in the trunk. They soon found Akeem Ajimotokan, a 33-year-old Columbia University worker, bound and unconscious.
Police said Ajimotokan's neck was broken and one of his ears was nearly sliced off. Ajimotokan was still in critical condition Friday at Harlem Hospital. He was in a coma and breathing with the aid of a ventilator, Kelly said.
Kelly said Blake "had some discussions with his wife" about having done something awful that would cause his life to end. He also threatened to shoot himself.
Blake, who stands 6-foot-8 and weighs 230 pounds, has done several stretches behind bars. He was convicted three times for stealing BMWs, police said.
A career car thief accused of stuffing a badly beaten man in the trunk of a BMW narrowly escaped capture in Long Island hours before victim was found in Manhattan, police officials said.
Barion Blake, 30, was still being sought Friday.
A Nassau County cop saw Blake and another man switching license plates on the stolen BMW about 2:30 a.m. Wednesday. The cop walked up to the beemer and Blake jumped into the driver's seat and peeled off.
NYPD Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said the Nassau cop pursued the BMW westbound on the Jericho Turnpike and then south on the Cross Island Parkway. The officer lost control of his squad car and it flipped over.
The suspect was briefly in the clear.
Hours later the BMW slammed into a taxi in Inwood, and the driver, believed to be Blake, ran off. The taxi driver called police who spotted a bullet hole in the trunk. They soon found Akeem Ajimotokan, a 33-year-old Columbia University worker, bound and unconscious.
Police said Ajimotokan's neck was broken and one of his ears was nearly sliced off. Ajimotokan was still in critical condition Friday at Harlem Hospital. He was in a coma and breathing with the aid of a ventilator, Kelly said.
Kelly said Blake "had some discussions with his wife" about having done something awful that would cause his life to end. He also threatened to shoot himself.
Blake, who stands 6-foot-8 and weighs 230 pounds, has done several stretches behind bars. He was convicted three times for stealing BMWs, police said.
Comment