Three-hour standoff between cops in riot gear and Queens residents after drug bust

Photo:Robert Stridiron

A drug bust outside a Queens housing project erupted into a tense three-hour standoff Friday night as dozens of angry residents marched on the 113th Precinct and cops in riot gear stood guard over their stationhouse.

Shocked witnesses said police officers pounded on brothers Raynard Fields, 27, and Corey Crichlow, 33, outside the Baisley Park Houses during the 7:45 p.m. arrest on Foch Blvd.

“The cops came up to the car and dragged (Crichlow) out and started beating on him,” said witness Gary Frazier, 22. “When (Fields) tried to calm the situation down, they beat him down. Cops came from everywhere.”

About 50 incensed residents protested the arrest and what they call a pattern of brutality by the NYPD by marching down Guy R. Brewer Blvd. to the Baisley Blvd. stationhouse. They ran through the streets, knocking garbage cans over during their 6-block trek, witnesses said.

“I am sick of the 113th Precinct harassing the young black men in the Baisley projects,” said marcher Kathy Moore, 40.

Cops responded to the impromptu protest in riot helmets and batons, forcing protesters onto the sidewalk.

“They were wilding out here,” livery cab driver Danny McLennon, 42, said of the residents. “The cops shut down Guy Brewer Blvd. Not even the buses could get through.”

More cops in riot gear met protesters at the 113th Precinct, where Fields was being treated inside an ambulance parked next to the stationhouse. Sources said he suffered a deep gash to his face during the brawl. He was expected to be taken to a hospital, a relative said.

Police sources said officers spotted Crichlow with drugs, but he swallowed them as they approached. The officers were arresting Crichlow when Fields interjected and a fight broke out, sources said.

At least one officer was injured in the fight and was taken to an area hospital with neck and back injuries. Other cops had to evade a barrage of garbage and bottles that witnesses were throwing at them.

“(Residents) were throwing things from windows,” a police source said.

According to court records, Crichlow did two years in prison after being convicted on drug charges in 2001. He’s currently engaged to a correction officer, family members said.

But the Rev. Richard Hogan, the respected pastor of the Divine Deliverance Ministry in Jamaica and the uncle of Crichlow and Fields, said Crichlow is always being stopped by the police.

“My nephew was driving a gray Chrysler with tinted windows when he was stopped on this occasion,” said Hogan. “(Cops) said they thought they saw him make a transaction. They didn’t find anything on him.”

Hogan said officers had pulled Crichlow out of the car when witnesses ran to get Fields, who was playing basketball nearby.

“Raynard was still 80 yards away when he was pushed down by a police officer,” Hogan said. “He’s a polite kid, never had a problem with police, he was just running over to see what happened to his brother and he was attacked.”

Crichlow’s cousin said she tried to record the arrest, but a cop snatched her phone.

“(Cops) were kicking (Crichlow) in the face, stomping him, leaning on him with their knees,” said cousin Tyniera Hogan, 32. “He was trying to get up, but they kept pushing him back down . . . it didn’t look like he was resisting.”

Hogan said Crichlow was taken to a hospital with bumps and bruises.

“Some officers don’t have the respect to serve,” Hogan said of the cops who arrested his nephews and sparked the outrage. “Kids got mad and the community got mad.”

Police said no arrests were made at the stationhouse. Charges against Crichlow and Fields were pending.

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