(Google Maps)
On Saturday, January 8 at 8:50pm, Alexandru Teisanu was arrested outside Atlantic Grill at 50 West 65th Street between Columbus and Central Park West. Teisanu is the CEO of the Monte Carlo Hospitality Group, the company which now owns Atlantic Grill.
The NYPD confirmed the arrest with ILTUWS on Sunday morning. Teisanu is being charged with ‘Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument.’ The charge comes from his alleged use of a fake parking placard, which gives off the impression that one is allowed to park just about anywhere.
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There are three degrees that can be charged for this offense: the third degree (170.20), a Class A misdemeanor punishable by as much as one year in jail; the second degree (170.25), a Class D felony carrying as many as seven years in state prison; and the first degree (170.30), which could be punishable to up to 15 years behind bars.
On Sunday at 12:35pm, ILTUWS spoke to Teisanu who declined to comment on his arrest. Multiple emails to the Monte Carlo Restaurant Group have gone unanswered as well.
Chris Giordano, President of the West 64th – West 67th Street Block Association, issued this statement “from the community” in regards to Teisanu’s arrest:
“Folks who live and work on 65th Street know how quickly dangerous conditions can develop when illegal parking causes others to double park. That a restaurant manager using a fake placard would knowingly contribute to these conditions is upsetting. The neighborhood appreciates the 20th Precinct and its Neighborhood Coordination Officers for its efforts to make our streets safe.”
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Giordano first wrote to ILTUWS in December, expressing frustration about the influx of illegal parking that was taking place on this street.
Thanks @NYPD20Pct for responding to chronic illegal parking at Fire Hydrant of AMG53. At least you helped remove his bogus placard. As soon as you left he moved from the Hydrant to the Truck Loading Only zone and ran back into @atlanticgrill where he works. @nyc311 pic.twitter.com/910rLPgV2W
— W 64th thru 67th Streets Block Association (@6467_block) November 17, 2021
When it felt like calls to 311 were going unanswered, Giordano and other members of the community took the fake parking placard issue to the 20th Precinct. In December, the photo below was taken of a Mercedes with license plate AMG 53, which appears to belong to Teisanu.
Giordano spoke with officer Steven Rodrigues from the 20th Precinct NCO program who confirmed the placard was fake. Officer Rodrigues also pointed out that whoever created the placard misspelled the word “alteration.”
According to Giordano, when Officer Rodrigues called the phone number on the Teisanu’s placard, he was hung up on.
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One factor which may contribute to an increase in illegal parking is that the part of the north side of 65th Street is blocked off for an Extell Development construction site.
In addition, Academics West has school buses and parents dropping kids off during the day – and there’s an MTA bus stop on the South side of the street. West 65th Street is also highly trafficked since it runs through Central Park, connecting to the East Side.
But there’s also a parking garage. So nobody is forced to park illegally.
Since this isn’t a violent crime let’s just let him go with no consequence. Isn’t that what the new nyc parole laws are about.
Yikes, with management that obviously lacking in morals I’m not sure I feel great about the new ownership. Sad because it’s one of our favorites in the neighborhood.
I’ve noticed a lot more people parking at fire hydrants. Saturday night up and down Columbus, people just park their cars there and leave and none of the cars are ticketed. You almost want a fire to happen just to watch FDNY flip the car over or break all the windows.
And Amazon Logistics likes to use traffic lanes of Columbus as massive unloading zones for hours.
Fresh Direct usually manages to park in a loading zone. And an UPS or FedEx truck unloading packages is a smaller operation, even if using a traffic lane — which FedEx and UPS make some effort to avoid doing.
It’s really true…..after 4 years of having a president who lied, cheated and dumbed down the office to the point of world ridicule and twice being impeached….each one of us has begun to incorporate his lawlessness, carelessness, and general “If so-and-so does it and gets away with it, why shouldn’t I? ” logic into our own lives and character. Thus, whether it’s illegal double-parking, jumping the turnstile, smoking or buying weed flagrantly, breaking into stores and stealing counter items from glasses-frames to liquor, from designer handbags to fur coats — anything goes. And now thanks to a total idiot of a newly elected Manhattan D.A. authorities will not even be prosecuting half of those crimes against society. In the end, we couldn’t even link Russian interference in the 2016 election to the vain, venal, vapid, vile, and vulgar former president Putin has in his hip pocket.
All the doorman in the building where Atlantic Grill also have fake placards!
And I respet the NYPD However, thier private cars are always in front of fire hydrants ,bus turn lanes ,No Parking in school zones ,double and tripple parked and sometime accross crosswalks and on side walks!
West 100th Street between Columbus and Amsterdam is the largest NYPD parking lot in the world – hundreds of illegally parked cars on the sidewalks, on hydrants, double/triple/quadruple parked all hours of the day and night. There is barely one passable lane for traffic down the center – mostly from NJ of course. City employees can park anywhere with the “permit” of an MTA vest or an NYPD baseball cap or any other depiction that pushes the crony button.
Our new DA basically announces he’s going to let Manhattan turn into a war zone and this is what we are worried about? Good grief.
Just when I think the laws in this city couldn’t be any more ridiculous, this happens. So looters, rapists, murderers can all be set free. But watch out if you are a lowlife who has a false parking placard. He should be fined not arrested.
Their saying he could get 1, 7 or 15 years in prison for this?!?! What a joke! People are assaulting, robbing and beating innocent people and prosecuting these offenders is the last thing on our new DA’s mind! To my liberal, democrat neighbors who put this idiot in office, congratulations! But at least the guy with the fake parking placard will get justice.
Those buses from Academics West are a bigger deal than most realize. ILTUWS, please do more research into that “school”, you’ll definitely find a good story there.
Crimes like this should be punished by implementing fines or community service. On a side note, I recently tried the “new” Atlantic Grill and, although the service was friendly, the food was a big letdown. I’m not optimistic for its survival.
I really can’t believe the energy behind this. Carjackings. Subway violence. Gun violence. Aggressive panhandling. And people are actually nonplussed. But parking with a counterfeit placard is suddenly front and center with a question of the guy’s morality. I am in the twilight zone.
This is the epitome of a great ultralocal news story. Nice reporting!
The Salmon Galette dish that used to be on the brunch menu at Atlantic Grill was excellent.
Ceo got enough money to buy another property huge parking lot no excuses at all.