NYPD: Torie Branch arrested, charged after 95-year-old's electric wheelchair stolen
NEW YORK -- Police have made an arrest after they said a person was spotted riding a 95-year-old Holocaust survivor's stolen electric wheelchair on the Upper West Side.
Torie Branch, 45, from the Bronx, was charged with grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property, NYPD said Saturday.
Thanks to everyone who helped spread the word about this heartless crime. @NYPDDetectives have arrested a 45-year-old man from the Bronx who has been charged with grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property. https://t.co/wKtcvXLd7Q
— Commissioner Sewell (@NYPDPC) May 7, 2022
On Friday, police released video of a suspect in the wheelchair zipping south on West End Avenue.
Police say Branch allegedly rode off in it Tuesday morning after the wheelchair's 95-year-old owner left it outside his doctor's office on the Upper West Side.
The wheelchair is valued at more than $2,500, police said.
Unfortunately, the chair has not been recovered.