CHEEKTOWAGA, N.Y. — A 32-year-old Buffalo man is facing charges after allegedly seriously injuring an 80-year-old woman during an attempted purse snatching in Cheektowaga.
The Cheektowaga Police Department says officers were called to the Tops Market store on Harlem Road at Kensington Avenue on Tuesday around 5:15 p.m. for the incident. Officers say the report first came through as a hit-and-run incident, but were told as they arrived to the scene that an attempted robbery had instead occurred.
A witness told police they saw a man in a white Jeep pulling on a woman's purse handles. It's alleged that the woman continued to hold onto the purse and was subsequently dragged by the moving vehicle in the parking lot. The Jeep then drove away from the scene after the woman fell, and continued down Kensington Avenue.
Another witness followed the Jeep out of the parking lot and took a photo of the license plate, according to police. Officers checked the plate and discovered that the 2014 Jeep was reported stolen back on April 1.
Based on the stolen vehicle report and other information, police identified Michael Sawyer as the suspect involved in the attempted robbery. A witness also allegedly identified Sawyer as the man driving the Jeep.
Following the incident, City of Buffalo police located the Jeep on Miller Avenue, near Broadway, and surveillance was set up on the Jeep by Cheektowaga and Buffalo police officers. From there, officers confronted Sawyer when they saw him approaching the vehicle. Sawyer then allegedly took off running and was apprehended by police a short time later in a backyard.
Sawyer has been charged with attempted robbery in the first degree and assault in the first degree. Sawyer was arraigned in Cheektowaga Town Court on Wednesday. Bail has been set to $200,000.
According to the Cheektowaga Police Department, Sawyer has been arrested 24 times since 2010, including 14 felony charges. Police add that Sayer has been charged on 10 different occasions since 2016 for reckless driving and leading police on a vehicle pursuit.
The victim of the robbery remains hospitalized in intensive care.
