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According to the charges, the cops observed Freistat driving a black Nissan Maxima with a defective taillight and failing to come to a full stop at a stop sign in the vicinity of 173-11 110th Avenue in Jamaica.
By Forum Staff
A Queens man has been charged with the attempted murder of two police officers, ]after being pulled over earlier this week for running a stop sign and driving with a defective taillight. It is alleged that the defendant dragged one officer with his vehicle and clipped the other officer in the arm while attempting to escape arrest.
“This case clearly illustrated how dangerous police work is and why police officers are not permitted the luxury of assuming that any traffic stop is a routine matter,” said DA Brown. “In this case, the defendant is accused of showing that he has no regard for authority and is a menace to society by his senseless and violent actions. He now faces the possibility of life in prison if convicted.”
Kyle Freistat, 38, of Jamaica arraigned on a 16-count criminal complaint charging him with two counts each of first-degree attempted murder, first-degree assault and second- and third-degree criminal possession of a weapon, and one count each of assault on a peace or police officer, fireman or emergency medical services professional, second-degree assault, first-degree reckless endangerment, second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, unlawful fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle, resisting arrest, failed to stop for stop sign and equipment violation. The defendant was held without bail.
NYPD officers Daniel Gaspertti and Anthony Arlistico, of the 103rd Precinct, were on patrol last Wednesday afternoon, when they observed Freistat driving a black Nissan Maxima with a defective taillight. He failed to come to a stop at a stop sign in the vicinity of 173rd street and 110th Avenue in Jamaica and failing to come to a full stop at a stop sign in the vicinity of 173-11 110th Avenue in the Jamaica section of Queens. It is alleged that when the two officers pulled the vehicle over, Freistat produced a forged United States Virgin Islands driver’s license. Officer Gaspertti was standing at the front driver’s side door of the vehicle and his partner, Officer Arlistico, was located on the front passenger side.
Freistat refused to exit the vehicle when told to do so and when Officer Gaspertti opened the front driver’s side door in an attempt to get the defendant out of the vehicle, Freistat accelerated the vehicle forward at a high rate of speed, trapping Officer Gaspertti with the vehicle’s opened driver’s side door and dragging him until Freistat struck a parked vehicle.
As Officer Arlistico again approached the vehicle and attempted to open the front passenger’s door, Freistat allegedly drove the vehicle in reverse, forcing Officer Arlistico to jump out of the way to avoid being struck by the vehicle. Freistat then allegedly drove the vehicle forward and struck Officer Arlistico with the vehicle’s passenger door as he drove past him with Officer Gaspertti still trapped inside the driver’s side door and being dragged by the vehicle until Freistat struck two more parked vehicles.
As he was being placed under arrest, Freistat flailed his arms and twisted his body in an attempt to avoid being handcuffed. A knife was recovered from the floor of the vehicle.
Officer Gaspertti was taken to a local Queens hospital for various injuries, including numerous lacerations, bruising, swelling, substantial to his face and body and a broken right patellar (kneecap). Officer Arlistico was also taken to the hospital for treatment of his injuries. In executing a court-authorized search warrant on Freistat’s vehicle, police allegedly recovered a loaded 9mm semi-automatic pistol containing eight rounds of ammunition.
