Career transit thief Charles Barry lengthened his rap sheet by five arrests in the first five weeks of 2020 — and each time he was freed without bail, he ended up accused of more crimes.
A new bail law in New York requires judges to free most suspects arrested for non-violent crimes. Because the pile of charges Barry faces are not violent — including grand larceny, petty larceny and fraudulent accosting — judges were not allowed to send him to jail while the cases were awaiting trial.
Barry has a long history of pickpocketing unsuspecting straphangers, according to criminal complaints and police sources. He particularly likes to filch wallets from sleeping subway passengers late at night.
