Manhattan
Be careful what you wish for.
A man was arrested in Central Park -- after he allegedly dared an officer to bust him for trying to illegally rent bikes to tourists,
Sadi Traore, 20, of Harlem was in the park near Columbus Circle at 2:30 p.m. Oct. 25 when a parks enforcement officer heard him soliciting passing tourists for bike rentals, sources said.
The officer approached him, and Traore promised not to solicit anymore, but he refused to leave the park when the officer ordered him to do so, the sources said.
Traore then put his arms behind his back and dared the officer to arrest him.
The officer obliged, but Traore allegedly struggled with him.
Traore was charged with criminal solicitation, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.
A Walk In The Park has learned that Sadi is the brother of pedicab driver Amadou Traore who starred in a widely seen You Tube video depicting a confrontation he had with Park Enforcement Patrol (PEP) in December 2008. Mr. Traore, 19 - who stands 6-feet-5 inches tall and weighs 250 pounds, resisted the officers - one a 5-feet 4 female - on Fifth Ave and 59th Street near Central Parks Grand's Army Plaza. The officers were eventually able to subdue the man - with assistance from an NYPD Highway cop - as seen in the end of the graphic video.
According to Mr. Amadou's account at the time, he spent a week in jail and had four pedicab related arrests. – Geoffrey Croft
Read View More:
New York Post - November 1, 2010 - John Doyle and Jessica Simeone
gothamist - December 25, 2008 - By Jen Chung
Caught On Tape: Pedicab Operator, Officer Struggle
MSNBC.COM - Jan 8, 2009 - By Pei-Sze Cheng and John P. Wise
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