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Deranged Man Tries to Kidnap Son of FDNY Chief
By
John Del Signore
Published May 18, 2009
Modified May 18, 2009
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By
John Del Signore
Published May 18, 2009
Modified May 18, 2009
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What started out as an ordinary Sunday shopping trip with his son erupted into a creepy fistfight for FDNY chief Butch Brandes, who says a strange man tried to snatch his 8-year-old son Jake outside Kings Plaza Mall. The two were walking on the crowded sidewalk when an unidentified man approached and started screaming that Jake was his son, not Brandes's. The man began punching Brandes after he locked Jake in his car, and they began fighting in the middle of the intersection of Flatbush Avenue and Avenue V. Brandes was finally assisted by good Samaritan Kevin Williams, who tells the Daily News, "[Brandes] was yelling as he fought, 'He's trying to take my kid - can you help me?' I was able to get the man from behind and knock him to the ground. I had to do something." The unidentified attacker was taken into police custody after Williams and Brandes subdued him. Two striking photos in the News show both the assailant, who has a dead-eye stare, and an understandably freaked-out Jake clutching his real father, who suffered several bruises and cuts during the incident.
Tagged
attempted kidnapping
fdny
kings plaza mall
nyc
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.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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