Bronx mugger arrested for stomping on cop's head extradited to NYC, faces attempted murder charges

Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News on Jun 5, 2025

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NEW YORK — A Bronx mugger who brutally assaulted an off-duty NYPD officer and robbed him of his gun, then fled to Virginia disguised with a woman’s wig, was brought back to New York early Thursday and charged with attempted murder of a police officer, officials said.

Wayne Lucas, 23, is also facing attempted robbery, attempted aggravated assault of a police officer, and weapons possession for the May 24 attack against police Officer Chowdhury Nafees, officials said.

His arraignment in Bronx Criminal Court was pending.

Officer Nafees, 27, was coming home from work and was wearing a jacket over his NYPD uniform when Lucas and Taveon Hargrove, also 23, attacked the cop at knifepoint near St. Peters and Tratman Aves. in Westchester Square around 4:15 a.m., cops said.

The pair ran up to Nafees, threatened him with a knife, and beat him unconscious, police said.

A good Samaritan called police after discovering Nafees unconscious on the pavement, and medics rushed him to a local hospital in critical condition, according to an online fundraiser created to help cover Nafees’ medical bills and support his family.

Horrific surveillance video recovered during the attack shows two men knocking Nafees onto the ground on his back, then repeatedly punching him in the face. After they rifle through his pockets, steal his gun, and walk away, one of them backtracks to the victim and, in a final blow, viciously stomps on the helpless Nafees’ head.

Nafees was released from the hospital last week, but he has a long road to recovery, his brother told the Daily News.

“The people in the hospital did a tremendous job bringing him back from what he was,” said Chowdhury Navid, 25. “We still don’t know the psychological cost. We still need some time to process the whole thing. We’ll talk to therapists, then we will know how deep it is.”

Both Lucas and Hargrove both fled to Virginia.

Lucas was captured last Wednesday night dressed in a woman’s wig, a disguise that did not fool cops who arrested him.

“I’m pleased to announce that this afternoon, Wayne Lucas was taken into custody in Virginia just as the officer he so brutally assaulted was discharged from the hospital to the cheers of his NYPD family,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch posted on X.

“Come for one of us, & you’ll have the full force of the NYPD coming for you.”

Hargrove was arrested a day earlier. Extradition proceedings to bring him back to New York were ongoing, cops said.

Cops said they caught a break when Hargrove’s father, Jeffrey Hargrove, 55, was arrested for petty larceny and criminal possession of stolen property after he was allegedly caught using one of the beaten cop’s credit cards.

The elder Hargrove was released without bail after being arraigned in Bronx Criminal Court.

Nafees came to the United States from Bangladesh five years ago and dreamed of becoming an NYPD officer to help his family, who live in the Bronx. The rookie cop has been on the force since September and worked as a 911 dispatcher for two and half years before that.

Navid said he believes his brother was targeted because he is a cop.

“It’s not that they did it to a police officer,” Navid said. “They did it because he was a police officer. It was intentional. If you want my money, you want my wallet — take it. Anything you do after that is purely out of spite, against law and order, the NYPD and the nation itself.”

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