Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Occupy Protester Arrested For Allegedly Assaulting NYPD Officer With Metal Pipe
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Apr 15, 2012
Modified Apr 25, 2012
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 .
center
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Apr 15, 2012
Modified Apr 25, 2012
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
According to police, the two men who were arrested in front of the Sixth Street Community Center last night allegedly assaulted an NYPD sergeant with a metal pipe in front of the Starbucks on Astor Place. One of the men, 41-year-old Alexander Penley, is an attorney and has been an Occupy Wall Street organizer since the movement began in the fall.
Penley, along with 30-year-old Nicholas Thommen, were arrested around 10 p.m. after what witnesses described as a violent scuffle between the two men and police officers, and are charged with a litany of offenses, including assaulting a police officer, menacing, criminal possession of a weapon, resisting arrest, and inciting a riot.
Penley has been quoted in stories about Occupy Wall Street in The Guardian and USA Today, and appeared on the local Manhattan television show Let Them Talk in October.
An NYPD spokesman said that officers received a report around 9 p.m. that a "disorderly group" had gathered in front of the Starbucks at Lafayette and Astor Place. A video transmission detailing that an officer needed assistance followed, and police found "individuals hitting the window of the establishment." When a sergeant attempted to intervene and make an arrest, "the crowd became unruly," and he was allegedly struck with a metal pipe by two men.
The officer sustained minor injuries to his hands and knees, and was taken to a local hospital before being released. The two men fled.
Around an hour later, police received a report that the two men in question were in front of the Sixth Street Community Center. The police spokesperson could not confirm accounts that police believed that bottles were being thrown off the building, which is what witnesses said they were told when the police arrived around 10 p.m.
An employee at the community center who refused to give their name said that to their knowledge, no one at the event was involved in any of the vandalism or violent action that had taken place beforehand, and had caused police to close Tompkins Square Park. Other witnesses agreed with this assertion.
Ben Myers, a mass defense office coordinator at the New York City chapter of the National Lawyer's Guild, said the organization was aware that Penley was arrested, but couldn't comment on the specific charges. "We're still working with jail support to secure his release."
[UPDATE] The NYPD's press release on the arrests refers to them as "anarchist-related arrests of individuals among a group of 25 who fought with police and who had tried to use eight-foot-long galvanized metal pipes to smash windows of a Starbucks at Astor Place and Lafayette Street at 8:45 p.m." The police also claim that patrons of Starbucks were hiding under the tables during the incident.
The release states that an NYPD lieutenant also sustained injuries in the incident, but there is no mention of their severity. After police took one man into custody outside the Starbucks, "At an after-party at the 6th Street community center within the confines of the 9th Precinct, police were assaulted again as they took a suspect outside of the location there into custody."
The Village Voice and livestreamer Tim Pool credit "black bloc" tactics, used by a group protesters who may not formally be tied to Occupy Wall Street but who have demonstrated with the movement in the past, most recently in January, when protesters threw bottles at police officers and allegedly tried to break the video equipment of livestreamers. The tactics involve dressing in black and engaging in extralegal activities.
Elsewhere yesterday, an Occupy Wall Street demonstration drew hundreds of peaceful protesters to Central Park for a "Spring Awakening" and General Assembly, and on Friday, the group engaged in "spring training" in Lower Manhattan. Watch the video by Mo Scarpelli below.
Occupy Wall Street // Spring Training // April 13, 2012 from Mo Scarpelli on Vimeo.
Tagged
alphabet city
black bloc
crime
east village
nypd
occupy wall street
ows
sixth street community center
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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 .