Drag Racing On Westchester Avenue Stopped By Cop

HARRISON, NY — Harrison Police Officer Rocky Consiglieri saw close to 80 cars and a whole lot of people on Westchester Avenue near the Butcher Bridge at 1 a.m. on Friday. There was a drag race going on and other cars lining up for successive races.

Calling for help, he moved in to break it up. When the crowd saw him coming, they fled.

Consiglieri chased several cars from the eastbound to the westbound side of Westchester Avenue and caught them by boxing them in at the entrance ramp to the southbound Hutchinson River Parkway.

"These events are fueled by social media as well as movies and reality shows like 'Fast & Furious' and 'Street Outlaws,'" Harrison Police Chief Joseph Yasinski said in a press release. "They threaten the safety of not only those behind the wheel but the public as a whole. I commend Officer Consigliere for his diligence while on patrol and for ending this dangerous activity without accident or injury to anyone."

Five men and one woman were arrested. None were Westchester County residents — all in their 20s, they are from Pomona and the Bronx in New York, plus Greenwich, Norwalk, Riverside and Stamford in Connecticut.

They were all charged with second-degree reckless endangerment, reckless driving, unlawful speed contest, speed not reasonable and failure to comply.

The vehicles were impounded and towed. The six were released on $500 bail each and are due in Harrison town court April 30.