Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Video: Chinatown Cops Arrest Elderly Man In Front Of Angry Crowd
By
John Del Signore
Published May 9, 2011
Modified May 9, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
John Del Signore
Published May 9, 2011
Modified May 9, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
There was some static in Columbus Park in Chinatown yesterday when the NYPD reportedly tried to stop a group of senior citizens from playing music. We're still trying to determine exactly how this incident devolved to the point where a bloodied elderly man was dragged away in handcuffs by mace-wielding cops, but here's video of the ugly scene. (Translation note: The angry crowd of seniors is chanting "Let him go!")
The woman who shot the video, Anda Wu, tells us, "I was walking by the park and I saw a crowd of elderly people screaming, 'Let him go!' My first thought was for my mom, who was in the park. I went over there to see if she was still there, and when I got there I saw the police arresting this man and pushing him against the tree. He was fighting back, but there were four cops.
"They threw him on the ground, and tried to put the handcuffs on him. All the elderly were yelling, 'The police are hitting him!' And one of the cops said if you guys are coming any closer I'm going to mace you. Then he took out his baton as if he wanted to hit someone, but he didn't. They were supposedly making too much noise. But he wasn't playing the instrument anymore when I got there."
Wu, a freelance interpreter, tells that every Saturday and Sunday for years now a group of senior citizens have gathered in the park to sing songs and make music, and she heard that someone called and complained about the noise. "Maybe some of the new people who have moved into the neighborhood didn't know the elderly come and play their instruments." We contacted the NYPD for more information and we'll update if we hear back.
Tagged
Chinatown
columbus park
street performer
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Deer are all over New Jersey roads looking for sex, state officials warn
Mid-October through mid-December is deer mating season, which can be a danger to drivers as the sex-seeking creatures cross roadways throughout the Garden State.
By
Rosemary Misdary
Published Oct 16, 2026 at 4:22 p.m. ET
Man messaged 'I got straight poison' before giving NYC college students fentanyl, feds say
A transcript from an April court hearing sheds new light on what transpired at Fashion Institute of Technology.
By
Samantha Max
News
Man messaged 'I got straight poison' before giving NYC college students fentanyl, feds say
A transcript from an April court hearing sheds new light on what transpired at Fashion Institute of Technology.
By
Samantha Max
Inside the plan to fix the nearly collapsed Pfizer Building, 1/64th of an inch at a time
By
David Brand
School bus carrying autistic students got lost in Brooklyn for 4 hours last year
By
Jessica Gould
NYC’s bridges can last 'forever,' if we take care of them
By
Clayton Guse
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .