MOTT HAVEN — A Bronx man charged with stealing a kayak from a parked car claimed he bought it from a crackhead for $20, according to court documents.
On March 8 around 10 p.m., William Urizar, 27, broke the rear window of a car at 132nd Street and Alexander Avenue in the 40th Precinct and snatched a Folbot Gremlin foldable kayak out of the back, police said.
Urizar then turned around and immediately put up an ad on Craigslist seeking to sell the kayak — which costs $1,323 new — according to the company's website. Officers from the 40th Precinct responded to the ad right away and arrested him on March 9 when they met to make the sale, police said.
He had a variety of excuses for how he got the stolen goods.
“I won it in a raffle,” Urizar told officers, according to the criminal complaint. “I found it. I bought it off a crackhead for $20.”
Urizar had also nabbed a yellow MTI life vest, a black Folbot bookbag and a yellow canyon dry bag, items that were worth more than $1,000 combined, court documents said.
Kevin Clyne, the owner of the items, said that Urizar did not have permission to take them, and Urizar has since been charged with petit larceny and two counts of criminal possession of stolen property, according to court papers. Clyne could not be reached for comment.
Urizar has a lengthy criminal history that includes nine counts of grand larceny, as well as charges of assault and robbery, police said.
Urizar was arraigned on March 10 and released on his own recognizance, and he is due back in court on April 28, according to the Bronx District Attorney's office.
His lawyer, Amy Gallicchio of the Bronx Defenders, did not respond to a request for comment.
Although the Bronx River offers residents an opportunity to kayak within the borough, police maintained that it was an unusual sight to see someone walking around Mott Haven with the small boat.
"It's not like we have people in the neighborhood kayaking around here," Lieutenant Andy Hatki said.
