New York Man Arrested After Scaring Off Mugger With Warning Shots

A man was arrested in New York City after firing off warning shots to scare away a would-be mugger.

The mugger, a 49-year-old homeless man, tried to mug a 40-year-old woman before the warning shots were fired.

No one was hurt in the altercation, leaving many questioning why the man was arrested.

New York man who saved woman from subway mugging by scaring off would-be robber with warning shot arrested https://t.co/Aa2tyYzLnP #FoxNews

— Tom Fitton (@TomFitton) November 9, 2023

Fox News has more on the story:

The NYPD arrested John Rote, 43, of Queens, on Wednesday afternoon, hours after asking for the public’s help tracking him down in connection with an altercation on the 49th Street NRW station platform the evening before.

Rote overheard Matthew Roesch, the mugging suspect, demanding the woman give him money, or he’d steal her purse, according to authorities.

Rote is accused of firing shots, interrupting the attempted robbery without striking anyone. Surveillance images show him calmly walking out through the turnstile, carrying a tote bag from a popular camera store, a green bookbag and a tablet.

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Now he faces charges of criminal possession of a weapon, reckless endangerment, criminal possession of a firearm and menacing.

Rote could not immediately be reached for comment.

“I want to be clear: we don’t tolerate this kind of conduct in NYC Transit, period,” the city’s top transit official, Richard Davey, said in a statement after Rote’s arrest. “Once again cameras recorded a perpetrator, and we are grateful the NYPD made an arrest within hours. Thank goodness nobody was hurt here – but what occurred was outrageous, reckless, and unacceptable.”

What does New York City not tolerate?

Protecting yourself?

Standing up to criminals?

That indeed seems to be the trend in the crime-ridden city where Democrats continue to let criminals walk free.

New York man who saved woman from subway mugging by scaring off would-be robber with warning shot arrested https://t.co/WiZQCstyVX #FoxNews

God forbid you hurt one of the Criminals that the politicians Love so much. Time to vote these SOROS paid crooks OUT! pic.twitter.com/hm3hPGQiRE

— Robert A (@ras1863) November 9, 2023

Does this not show you how strongly the prefer to have us getting mugged or killed? That's far better than having someone use a gun to save a life, even if no one was shot. They want us to be victims. https://t.co/n8F8lRrv3F

— Constitutionalist (@MAGA_1962) November 9, 2023

ABC 7 New York shares more on the story:

“We’re here to tell New Yorkers that this kind of misbehavior will not be tolerated, we’re going to work with the NYPD to bring these two perpetrators to justice,” said NYC Transit President Richard Davey.

The crime is raising awareness about two issues that the MTA is working hard to address: guns in the subway system and fare evasion.

Data from the NYPD shows that gun arrests are up 39.3% from this time last year and fare evasion arrests are up 144.5%.

“Weapons shouldn’t be on the streets of New York, they are, and if that occurs, what happens on the streets has come down to our subways,” Davey said. “We need to get a handle on the gun issue certainly in the city.”

A gun is the only thing that prevents that woman from being mugged.

Things could have escalated to much worse had the man not been there when he was.

Many would have used the mugging as an excuse to escalate the situation and harm the mugger.

This man should be rewarded for his only firing a warning shot.