NYPD to question woman who tackled Black teenager

NEW YORK >> For more than a week, authorities in New York City have faced mounting public pressure to arrest a woman caught on video tackling a Black teenager in the lobby of a boutique hotel in SoHo after falsely accusing him of stealing her cellphone.

Now, detectives are traveling to California to interview the woman, police said Thursday — an unusual step often reserved for crimes that are violent or high profile.

It was not yet clear if that meant the woman, identified by her lawyer as Miya Ponsetto, 22, would face any charges in connection with the Dec. 26 incident. Police said the investigation was continuing, and prosecutors have declined to discuss the case, noting Thursday that charges have not been filed.

The episode was yet another instance of Black people being confronted with baseless accusations while going about their daily lives. It has drawn comparisons to an incident in May when a white woman called 911 to falsely claim that a Black bird-watcher in Central Park was threatening her life.

The video was taken and posted on social media by Keyon Harrold, a prominent jazz musician, who was staying at the Arlo hotel with his 14-year- old son, Keyon Harrold Jr.

In the video, Ponsetto can be seen confronting Harrold and his son after they walk into the hotel lobby, insisting without evidence that Keyon Jr. has her cellphone. Ponsetto can be seen asking a hotel manager to help her, after which the manager identifies himself and asks Keyon Jr. to produce a cellphone, in an apparent attempt to verify Ponsetto’s claim.

Surveillance footage released by police last week shows Ponsetto running after Keyon Jr. and tackling him. Harrold said he was told by the hotel that an Uber driver found Ponsetto’s phone later in the day.