UPPER EAST SIDE — An NYPD officer who was trying to arrest a pair of Barneys shoplifters over the weekend wound up in the hospital after one of the suspected thieves attacked him and escaped, officials said.
Barneys employees flagged down a set of NYPD officers who were near the store at 660 Madison Ave. at 61st Street just after 5:30 p.m. Saturday to report two men they said shoplifted $860 worth of clothes, police said.
When the officers approached the suspects, one of the men began to resist arrest, fighting with the officer and escaping, police said. He was last seen wearing a black shirt, camouflage shorts and black sneakers, police said.
Barneys said the altercation took place in front of the Apple store on Fifth Avenue.
The officer was taken to a local hospital where he was treated for a back injury and released, police said.
The NYPD could not immediately say how the officers came to be in the area or whether they were assigned to patrol the store. The department and Barneys have reportedly blamed each other for disproportionately targeting black and Latino shoppers with accusations of shoplifting.
Last week, Barneys agreed to pay $525,000 to settle an investigation initiated by State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, which found that Barneys was profiling minority customers.
The second suspected shoplifter in Saturday's incident, identified as 26-year-old Reginald Granger, was caught at the scene, police said. He was arraigned Sunday on charges of assaulting a police officer and petit larceny and was released on bail Tuesday, according to online records. He is due back in court on Friday.
Barneys' press office did not immediately respond to calls for comment.
Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS. The public can also submit tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers Website at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com or texting their tips to 274637(CRIMES) then entering TIP577.
