An alleged robber's crime just may have saved his life, and now he's thanking the police officers who came after him.
Police say the alleged robber walked into an Upper East Side CVS around 66th Street and Lexington Avenue and stole some baby formula before taking off running.
He was chased by a store employee, but soon collapsed to the ground. NYPD sergeant James Gebhard of the 19th precinct said they saw a man lying on the ground midway down the block. He soon realized the man was the alleged robber.
“I felt for his pulse on his wrist, there was absolutely no pulse. I put my hand on his chest to see if I could feel a heart beat. Nothing there. I put my fingers on his neck, nothing,” Gebhard said.
Gebhard did chest compressions until the suspect began to breathe again, and he felt a weak pulse return.
“He’s a person first. Everything else that he did, that’s secondary. Saving his life, bringing him back... He could be someone’s brother, someone’s father, someone’s son. He’s a person," he said.
The suspect was put into an ambulance and handcuffed. Days later, after a trip to the hospital and court, Gebhard said the suspect shook his hand and thanks him for saving his life.
Local
“He said he’s going to stay away from the criminal life and I said good, I hope he does. I hope this was a wake up call.”
