Police may have knocked out the “knockout game” before it became a habit.
New Haven saw six apparent instances of the game occur over two consecutive evenings in the Church Street South/Yale medical district three weeks ago. A roving gang of young men were approaching random pedestrians; without warning, one member of the gang would sucker-punch the victim, then the whole gang would flee. The attacks, part of a wave of “Knockout game” attacks in the East Coast, did not involve robberies.
Click here to read about the six attacks in New Haven, which occurred Nov. 18 and Nov. 19.
Patrol officers immediately developed suspects when they responded to the initial attacks. But they didn’t have enough evidence to make arrests.
At that point detectives from the department’s criminal intelligence unit took over the investigation. They have kept interviewing witnesses, victims and witnesses.
Thomas MacMillan Photo
They have since arrested a 15-year-old boy in connection with the attacks, according to unit chief Sgt. Karl Jacobson (pictured).
Jacobson said the unit expects to arrest a second teen soon from the group.
While pursuing the investigation, the police kept an eye on the kids. Jacobson knows of no other reports of knockout-style attacks involving that group of kids since those initial six incidents.
A possible seventh attack the same week (read about it here) did not fit the same profile and did not appear to involve the same kids, Jacobson said. Click on the video to watch a bakery manager describe what happened when he took a punch, then drew a knife on his attacker.
GOOD!!!!