Man Held in Ice Pick Robberies in NYC Elevators

Prosecutors say a parolee suspected of wielding an ice pick in a series of New York City robberies threatened to stab the toddler son of one of his victims.

John Martinez was being held on $750,000 cash bail after his arraignment early Thursday in Manhattan. His lawyer didn't immediately return a call.

Martinez was arrested on a parole-violation warrant Saturday in Cliffside Park, N.J. Authorities said he was a person of interest in six stickups in elevators in buildings in Manhattan and the Bronx.

He was charged Thursday with three muggings in a Manhattan apartment complex. A court complaint says he threatened to stab the 3-year-old with an ice pick during a Dec. 2 robbery.

Bronx prosecutors are still investigating the incidents there.