Putnam Man Brandished Knife, Attempted To Rob Yorktown Mobil: YPD

YORKTOWN, NY — The trail to solving a brazen robbery attempt led to a man who had already managed to find himself in handcuffs in a nearby jurisdiction.

The Yorktown Police Department says that a 43-year-old Mahopac resident was arrested and charged with felony first-degree attempted robbery, misdemeanor second-degree menacing and misdemeanor fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon.

On March 4, around 11:50 p.m., Yorktown police responded to the Mobil gas station on Crompond Road after receiving a report of a robbery in progress.

Once on the scene, witnesses told police that the suspect had fled the area on foot, after he brandished a knife and demanded money from the store clerk. The clerk was able to activate an alarm causing the suspect to flee without any proceeds from the store. An area search was conducted with the help of the Westchester County Police Department and a K-9, but they were unable to locate the suspect.

Yorktown detectives were able to identify a possibly suspect vehicle. An additional lead helped them to identify Paul Recchia as a suspect.

On Tuesday, Yorktown detectives collaborated with the Carmel Police Department, who had arrested Recchia for an unrelated incident. He was arrested by Yorktown police officers at the Carmel Police Department after he was released from Carmel police custody. Recchia was then taken back to Yorktown police headquarters where he was processed and charged.

He was arraigned by the Honorable Judge Cohen-Pierson, and a temporary order of protection was issued on behalf of the victim, and cash bail was set at $50,000 which Recchia was unable to post.

He was remanded to the Westchester County Jail and was due to appear in the Yorktown Justice Court on Thursday.