Man steals NYPD scooter, leads police on anticlimactic chase in New Jersey

Saturday, January 5, 2019
Man steals NYPD scooter, leads police on anticlimactic chase
A man led police on a bizarre chase in Paterson, New Jersey after he allegedly stole a three-wheel NYPD scooter.

PATERSON, New Jersey -- A man led police on a bizarre chase in Paterson, New Jersey after he allegedly stole a three-wheel NYPD scooter from the Central Park Precinct.

Officials tracked the scooter to Paterson hours after it was stolen around 4:30 a.m. Friday.

Police said 43-year-old Richard Raphael Lopez was inside the scooter when police found it near Trenton Avenue in Paterson and tried to drive away.

The scooter can only reach 40 miles per hour, so police easily caught up to Lopez and arrested him.

Lopez claimed he had permission to take the scooter for a reality TV show.

He was charged with receiving stolen property and resisting arrest. He will face grand larceny charges in New York City.

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