COLONIE — A 27-year-old Hillsdale man with three open warrants was arrested after allegedly trying to rob the Macy’s in Colonie Center and then leading police on a chase onto a runway at the Albany International Airport.
According to Lt. Daniel Belles, police were notified of the robbery at around 3:15 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 27. A male suspect, later identified as Tyler Meltz, attempted to steal jewelry from the counter of the department store and displayed what appeared to be a handgun.
He left the store and fled in a dark colored sedan. Based on the description of the suspect, Colonie police determined he was the same man who allegedly stole a car about an hour earlier from the Stewart’s parking lot on Albany-Shaker Road, Belles said.
Officers spotted the car on Wolf Road, but Meltz would not pull over and instead drove down the dead-end section of Old Niskayuna Road bordering the airport property. He drove through a fence and onto the runway and crashed through another fence while exiting the airport.
He abandoned the vehicle in the parking lot of the Pepsi plant on Old Niskayuna Road and was located a short distance away. He was arrested with the assistance of the Albany County Sheriff’s Office.
The runway was not being used at the time and airport operations were not interrupted.
Meltz stands charged with the felonies of grand larceny, reckless endangerment, attempted robbery and attempted grand larceny as well as a host of vehicle and traffic violations. Other charges may be forthcoming.
Colonie police arrested Meltz in July on a host of felonies including robbery, criminal possession of a weapon and grand larceny for various incidents around town, Belles said.
“Most notably, the robbery charge is from a knife-point robbery which occurred during a shoplifting incident at the same Macy’s in Colonie Center,” Belles said. “During that incident, he displayed and threatened a store employee with a knife after being confronted for stealing. All of these charges are still pending in court.”
In May, 2021 Meltz was arrested for bank robbery in Ulster County and at the time of his most recent arrest Rotterdam police, Greenport police and the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office had warrants out for his arrest.
He was arraigned in Colonie Town Court and remanded to the Albany County jail.
