STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Authorities allege that a 59-year-old felon from Great Kills stole a car from a senior at knifepoint during a domestic dispute.
The criminal complaint alleges that Craig Shea of Dewey Avenue brandished a knife when he asked a woman he knew if he could use her car. After the woman refused his request, the defendant held a knife to her neck.
“I will kill you if you do not give me the keys,” the complaint quoted Shea as saying to his victim.
The victim handed over the keys and Shea fled.
Shea was arrested after officers saw him driving the stolen car around noon on Jan. 19 in the 1500 block of Richmond Avenue in Graniteville, according to the complaint.
The defendant has been charged with robbery, grand larceny, criminal possession of stolen property, criminal possession of a weapon, petit larceny, menacing and harassment, according to the complaint.
Shea has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has been released with non-monetary conditions. He is due to appear in state Criminal Court in St. George on April 22, according to public records.
“Mr. Shea is innocent of these charges,” said the defendant’s attorney, John Poppe. “Mr. Shea has maintained his innocence since the day he was arrested. Since his arraignment, the district attorney has provided multiple disclosures that the complainant in this case lied to the police. Mr. Shea only wishes that the charges be rightfully dismissed. He holds no ill will towards his mother for her actions.”
Prior burglary convictions
Shea has been arrested more than 25 times in New York City for a variety of offenses, mostly for burglaries and drug-related offenses, according to a source with knowledge of the investigation.
The defendant was convicted in December 2022 of criminal trespass in the second degree in state Supreme Court in St. George. He was sentenced to eight months of incarceration with a five-year order of protection for the victim, according to the criminal complaint.