TIMES SQUARE — A man who lost his money gambling on the street told police he’d been robbed at gunpoint to avoid telling his child’s mother what actually happened, the NYPD said.
On Christmas Day around 6:15 p.m., the 34-year-old man called 911 and told responders that he had been "robbed at gunpoint" by two men inside the Majestic Deli at 200 W. 50th St., according to a criminal complaint with the Manhattan District Attorney's office.
But on Jan. 4, after police had already launched an investigation into the reported robbery, the man admitted he hadn’t actually been robbed but didn’t want to explain how he really parted with the cash to his child’s mother, the complaint said.
On Tuesday, Majestic Deli manager Spiro Athanas said police came to the deli to investigate after the man reported the incident.
They reviewed security footage from Dec. 25, which showed the man had been at the deli that day, but the footage only showed him taking cash out of the deli's ATM, he said.
"He came in, he used the ATM and then he left, and that was it — nobody saw him again," Athanas said.
Athanas said the man told police he took $1,000 out of the ATM, but confirmed the man actually took out $500.
The man was charged with one count of falsely reporting an incident, the DA said.
He was released without bail after giving a pre-arraignment deposition and is expected to appear in New York Criminal Court on Jan. 19, prosecutors said.
An attorney for the man could not be reached for comment Monday.
