Gangbusters: How a Street Tough, Elite Homicide Unit Took Down New York's Most Dangerous Gang by Stone Michael

Author:Stone, Michael [Stone, Michael]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Anchor
Published: 2010-04-27T16:00:00+00:00

ON AUGUST 18, four days after Michael Cruz’s shooting, Mark Tebbens and HIDTA detectives John Scaccia and Cesar Ortiz were searching the Four-Oh for Lenny and Pasqualito when their radio crackled. Eddie Benitez was calling from HIDTA’s Cypress Avenue observation post. He’d spotted Lenny and Pasqualito across the street, hanging out with two young male Hispanics in front of the gang’s headquarters at No. 354. Moments later, the detectives parked around the corner from Cypress and proceeded on foot.

As soon as Benitez saw Tebbens with his men, Benitez freaked. Tebbens’ size made him stand out at a distance, and both Lenny and Pasqualito knew him from past encounters. But it was too late to change plans. Pasqualito had just ducked into a playground between Cypress and Beekman. Benitez radioed the information to the detectives, but they let him go. Tebbens had spotted Lenny not more than thirty feet ahead of him. The gang leader was standing in front of the stoop of No. 354, flanked by two kids from the neighborhood. He was dressed casually—jeans, sneakers, a white T-shirt, and a black windbreaker—and his hair was cropped close to his head, shorter than Tebbens remembered. But there was no mistaking Lenny—the coiled posture, the muscular air of command. For a second or two their eyes locked, then Lenny turned abruptly and jogged up the steps to No. 354, followed by his two young acolytes.

Tebbens charged after him, unholstering his gun as he ran; he bounded up the stairs three at a time. At the rear of the entrance hall he came to a corridor that traversed the building and led on his left to a walkway overlooking a vacant lot. Lenny’s companions were standing near the door to the bridge. Tebbens lined them up against the wall as Scaccia arrived, panting from the run. Behind Scaccia, he spied Lenny.

Tebbens realized Lenny must have darted into an apartment, reemerging after the detective passed him in the hallway. He trained his gun on the gang leader, and motioned him against the wall next to the others. Then he holstered the gun out of Lenny’s sight and, pulling Lenny’s right arm behind his back, started to cuff his wrist. In the same instant, Lenny pushed off the wall with his left arm, momentarily freeing himself and sending the cuffs flying. Tebbens recovered and tackled Lenny from behind as he tried to escape, driving his face into the floor. But when Tebbens reached behind him for the cuffs, Lenny broke free again, and made for the door to the bridge.

Tebbens was taken aback by Lenny’s strength. He knew from experience that a subject who didn’t fight, who focused his energy on getting away, had an advantage over his pursuer, no matter how small or frail he was, and Lenny was neither. Tebbens also knew it was extremely difficult to cuff someone who was actively resisting. Still, given his size and conditioning, Tebbens was used to overpowering his prey.

As Lenny lurched toward the exit, Tebbens managed to trip him up and grab on to his jacket collar.

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