UTICA, NY – A 17-year-old who was impeding traffic on his bike fled from police and ditched a gun after officers arrived on scene Friday night.
According to police, on August 19th, an officer with the Patrol Division witnessed a male riding his bicycle in the middle of the roadway on the 1100 block of Mohawk St.
“The male was riding what was described as figure 8’s in front of cars purposefully in an attempt to impede traffic,” police reported. “The officer attempted to stop the male in an effort to have him cease his actions, and upon doing so the male fled from the officer. Having violations of the NYS Vehicle and Traffic Law, the officer gave pursuit. As the male was fleeing the officer witnessed him make a throwing motion and saw an object tossed underneath a vehicle.”
After a brief continued chase, the officer was able to apprehend the male and detain him without incident. Upon backtracking the area of the pursuit where the officer witnessed the male make the motion, he located a loaded .40 caliber handgun underneath the vehicle.
At the Utica Police Department, it was learned that the male was 17 years of age, and as such his identity will not be released, the department said after not releasing the suspect’s name to the press.