New York men reportedly pose as cops to snag copy of 'Grand Theft Auto V'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The game is over for three New York men who reportedly posed as cops to cut hundreds of people in a midnight line to buy “Grand Theft Auto V.”
The Staten Island Advance reports that the three men — one an auxiliary NYPD officer, another the son of a retired cop — skipped the long line at the Staten Island Mall late Tuesday to buy the latest installment in the top-selling video game that allows players to play three hardened criminals in a fictional California town.
Police identified the suspects as Frank Santanastaso, 19; Matthew Kirsheh, 20; and Kirolos Abdel Sayed, 19, all of New York City’s Staten Island borough.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}According to court documents and law enforcement sources, Santanastaso had his father's NYPD shield tattooed on his arm, Kirsheh was carrying a fake NYPD shield in his wallet and Abdel Sayed had his auxiliary badge and ID.
The trio allegedly drove to the mall in a car that had been purchased at a police auction and were initially mistaken for police, with a mall guard even offering the suspects coffee, a source told the newspaper.
"They sort of rode the ruse," the source said. "They didn't correct the record. They sort of went along with it."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The ruse was up, however, when the suspects left the mall, pulling a U-turn in front of a police officer in an unmarked car. The suspects were later pulled over in front of Kirsheh’s residence.
Each man faces up to a year in jail if convicted on a single count of second-degree criminal impersonation, a misdemeanor, according to Staten Island District Attorney Daniel Donovan.