Soros-Backed Manhattan DA Gives Sweetheart Deal to Gangbanger Tied to High-End Heists
A Manhattan gangbanger with a knack for high-end heists could have his latest charges dropped thanks to a sweetheart deal from District Attorney Alvin Bragg — because prosecutors have too much on their plates to try the case, The Post has learned.
Charles Lindsay — a reputed member of the “Rich Fam” gang, which has a history of pulling off pricey robberies — was last hauled into court Dec. 10 for allegedly stealing nearly $25,000 in pricey handbags and other items from Madison Avenue boutiques, according to sources and court records.
Lindsay, 22, is also a suspect in the rape of a 15-year-old girl in May in Brooklyn, as well as a February grand larceny and a robbery in March, sources said.
But in court last week, prosecutors agreed to drop the four grand larceny charges against Lindsay if just attends five sessions with Manhattan Justice Opportunities, an alternative sentencing program designed for low-level offenders.
“That’s a heck of a deal,” former Bronx prosecutor Michael Discioarro said Thursday. “This guy should play the lottery.”
Prosecutors told cops the deal was made because the DA’s Office was trying to clear up its calendar while dealing with a heavy caseload, one source said.
A stipulation in the state’s controversial 2019 criminal justice reforms — which eliminated bail on most criminal cases — includes “speedy trial” restrictions that have left short-staffed DA’s offices across the city overloaded with work.
Local prosecutors are so backed up meeting deadlines to provide evidence to defense lawyers that cases are falling by the wayside — and many young and promising assistant DAs are calling it quits as a result, The Post reported in March.
Gov. Kathy Hochul later announced tweaks to the restrictions to ease the burden on prosecutors to a small degree, but the restrictions continue the dog the system.
Bragg also has been under fire since taking over the office in January, when he announced that he would not seek prison time on a slew of charges and downgrade felony charges in hordes of cases — including armed robbery and drug offenses.
Last month, Manhattan prosecutors said they only pursued a pair of charges against a serial shoplifter with nearly a dozen cases because it would have been “a waste of resources” for the overworked office.
The deal Lindsay struck last week didn’t even require him to pay the boutiques he was accused of robbing back for the value of the stolen goods.
“Christmas came super early for this guy,” one law-enforcement source told The Post.
“This is very frustrating,” the source added. “It’s hard to talk to victims — these employees — after this guy is let out. We need their cooperation to arrest these individuals.
The source noted: “We don’t get to say we’re too busy to arrest these people. So why is it the other way around? This isn’t an anomaly.”
Another source wasn’t buying the caseload excuse.
“The Manhattan DA’s office loves to cite their workload as the reason for letting dangerous criminals off, Scott free,” the source said. “Maybe if they actually prosecuted people there would be fewer crimes.
The source added that it’s “hard to believe” Bragg’s office “could possibly have a heavy caseload with all the downgrading they do. Maybe one day a prosecutor will prosecute someone.”
Lindsay was accused of hitting swanky boutiques four times within the span of just one week, according to a criminal complaint filed in the case.
He allegedly stole $3,080 in merchandise from Etro Boutique at 720 Madison Avenue on Dec. 2 — and returned to the shop the very next day, allegedly stealing another $3,540 worth of items, the complaint said.
On Dec. 6 he was accused of walking off with $8,340 in goods from a Zadig & Voltaire shop at 1133 Madison Avenue.
And on Dec. 8 he allegedly stole $9,860 in merchandise from Akris Boutique at 831 Madison Avenue, bringing the total for the week to $24,914, the sources said.
Under the deal he got from prosecutors, Lindsay is required to attend five counseling sessions with the group and will have the felony charges in the four grand larceny cases dropped if he follows through.
None of those charges are eligible for bail under the 2019 reforms, which bars judges from setting bail on misdemeanors and many felony cases.
That means Lindsay would’ve walked free without bail while the charges were pending anyway — raising questions about why prosecutors were therefore so quick to offer a deal to drop the charges outright at his arraignment, the sources said.
A spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office said in an email Thursday that prosecutors “were not informed that this person was wanted for any other crime.
“We made a determination based on the facts before us.”
Lindsay had at least eight prior arrests before the four charges lodged against him last week, according to sources.
He was busted on second-degree robbery charges on three occasions — Dec. 22, 2016, Jan. 21, 2020, and Feb. 5, 2020.
He was also hit with a petty larceny charge on Jan. 4, 2019, sources said.
The Legal Aid Society, which represents Lindsay, did not respond to a request for comment on the case on Thursday.
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