BUFFALO, N.Y. — Five people were arrested and one gun recovered after the Erie County Sheriff’s Air 1 helicopter helped Buffalo Police track stolen vehicles over the weekend.
The arrests span three different incidents that began at 6 p.m. Saturday and spilled into the overnight hours Sunday.
The first incident began around 6 p.m. Saturday when a reported stolen vehicle was seen heading west on Genesee Street before turning north on Haven, which is a dead-end street. Two Buffalo teens — ages 14 and 15 — fled on foot before police arrested them.
Police on Sunday said the teens have been charged with one felony count of criminal possession of stolen property and one misdemeanor count of unauthorized use of a vehicle.
The second incident began around 11 p.m. Saturday when a vehicle, reported as stolen from the 1500 block of Bailey Avenue earlier in the day, was spotted by Buffalo Police. Air 1 tracked the vehicle to a home on the 500 block of Dodge Street, where four people fled the vehicle.
The driver — 18-year-old Tarrien Anderson of Buffalo — was found in a city garbage tote on the 500 block of Northampton Street. Anderson faces one felony count of criminal possession of stolen property and one misdemeanor count of unauthorized use of a vehicle. A 15-year-old and two 17-year-olds, all from Buffalo, were also in the vehicle, though no charges were immediately announced for them.
The third and final incident began past midnight. Buffalo Police witnessed a vehicle swerving through Bailey Avenue traffic near Oakmont Avenue, which led to officers activating their lights and sirens. The vehicle stopped, then fled the scene.
Air 1 was called on for assistance in tracking the vehicle. Personnel observed an something being thrown from the vehicle, and it was later determined to be a Smith & Wesson SD9 VE loaded with two rounds recovered on Kilhoffer Street.
Air 1 continued to track the vehicle, which sped through the city before it crashed at Main and Amherst streets. The people inside the vehicle fled on foot. The driver was arrested on an East Amherst Street rooftop, and the passenger was arrested at East Amherst and Pannell streets.
Darryl Black, 20, of Buffalo is charged with two felony counts of criminal possession of a weapon, one misdemeanor count of unlawful fleeing of a police officer in a motor vehicle, one count of operating a motor vehicle without insurance, and a couple traffic violations.
Timmarrow Crowley, 21, of Charlotte, N.C., faces two felony counts of criminal possession of a weapon.
"As we have seen before, last night shows just how vital the Sheriff’s helicopter is in our efforts to safely apprehend those that are stealing and operating stolen cars," Buffalo Police commissioner Joseph Gramaglia said in a statement, announcing the arrests.
"This is not just a property crime — some of these stolen vehicles are involved in violent crime and carrying guns, which was the case in two of last night’s arrests."
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