Quantcast

The DNAinfo archives brought to you by WNYC.
Read the press release here.

Real-Life Superhero Takes on Christopher Street Crime

By Andrea Swalec | August 18, 2011 10:35am

MANHATTAN — A real-life superhero is fighting crime on a Greenwich Village street that residents feared was fast descending into a seedy neighborhood resembling Batman's Gotham City.

The Dark Guardian is patrolling Christopher Street, summoned by rising crime levels that have left some law-abiding citizens cowering.

The Dark Guardian — whose mild-mannered alter-ego is Staten Island resident Chris Pollak, 27 — has for years been venturing into the shadows of Washington Square Park to fight drug dealers while dressed in a homemade hero costume and a bulletproof vest.

But, as Christopher Street reported an uptick in muggings and youth gangs, the one man crime fighting force who was featured in a recent HBO documentary moved west.

In the last four months he's been carrying out 1 a.m. to 6 a.m. patrols — accompanied by a crew of other masked volunteer crusaders, he told DNAinfo.

In that time, Dark Guardian said he has warded off would-be muggers, broken up fights, shooed away drug dealers with a flashlight and disarmed a man who was running through the street swinging a 10-foot-long pole.

"I have helped deter muggings out there," he said. "You see the gangs following drunks, looking to rob them, and our presence stops them from doing what they set out to."

Dark Guardian said he sees the crowds of LGBT youth in the West Village who some residents blame for the crimes. But he doesn't think the youths alone are the problem.

"It's a really strange mix of people out there," he said. "You think you're in the Village and everything's cool, but you see a lot of thug-type people out starting trouble."

Reports of robbery in the 6th Precinct have risen nearly 10 percent in the last year, from 82 to 90, according to the NYPD's CompStat reports. Reports of felony assault and rape have also risen, though overall crime has fallen by almost 6 percent in the same period. 

Dark Guardian can be spotted in the neighborhood wearing a black leather jacket with red stripes on the sleeves, matching pants and a bulletproof and stab-proof blue-and-red vest. But he said he also wears more muted, tactical clothing like black boots and pants — "like a SWAT team," he said.

"I like to change it up a bit, but I usually wear stuff that's more discreet," he said. 

He claims his presence  — along with extra police — is helping.

He said he has noticed a reduction in crime in the West Village in the last month, particularly on Christopher Street west of Seventh Avenue, where police set up a spotlight and mobile communications "eye in the sky" tower in June.

"We used to see tons of punks starting trouble in front of Karavas Pizza there, but the cops have done a really good job of clearing out that area lately," he said. 

But the superhero was hardly summoned by a signal lit by the people of Christopher Street.

In fact, the 6th Precinct's commanding officer Deputy Inspector Brandon del Pozo wants him to become a lot more incognito — by staying at home.

"It's one thing to be a citizen who sees something happening and spontaneously gets involved," he said.

"It's another for a citizen to wear an armored vest and actively patrol the streets in a superhero-like costume, looking for crime. Vigilantism is dangerous and ill-advised."

He questioned how comfortable average citizens are with self-appointed patrolmen and challenged superheroes to make it official.

"I invite any of these guys to join the police department, our auxiliaries or possibly the Guardian Angels," he said. 

Dark Guardian said his commitment to the West Village and any neighborhoods that need extra help is ongoing. 

"We have seen a pretty good improvement in the West Village lately," he said, "but I'm sure we'll always be back there."