NYPD Mounted Officer Arrests Purse Snatcher in Manhattan

A New York Police Department officer on horseback pursued and arrested a woman suspected of purse snatching in Manhattan's Upper West Side on Wednesday morning, capturing a dramatic chase through crowded streets that ended with the help of a bystander.

The incident began shortly after 11 a.m. near West 72nd Street when a victim reported her purse stolen. The mounted officer, riding a department horse named Kelly, quickly joined the pursuit as the suspect fled on foot. Body camera footage released by authorities shows the officer galloping along sidewalks, under scaffolding, between parked cars and across streets while shouting commands. "Stop!" the officer is heard yelling repeatedly. "Stop running!" The suspect, who denied taking the purse during the chase, continued to evade until a pedestrian intervened near a Verizon truck, holding her in place long enough for the officer to detain her. "I'm putting cuffs on you," the officer says in the video. "You're being detained." The stolen purse was recovered at the scene, and no injuries were reported.

The woman faces charges of grand larceny and providing false information to police, who said she gave a false name during the arrest....