COLONIE — A 36-year-old Albany woman is charged with a hate crime after she allegedly stole money from disabled people while they were skating at the Albany County Hockey Facility.
According to Lt. Robert Winn, police were called to the Albany Shaker Road site ice rink Sunday, Dec. 2, to answer complaints of five patrons about their money being stolen from their belongings that were left in the locker room. The patrons were attending an event for STRIDE hockey players.
STRIDE promotes adaptive athletic events for persons with disabilities. Three of the five victims were disabled, Winn said.
The total stolen was about $800 and individual thefts ranged from $35 to $400.
Officer Jacques Tremblay responded and identified a potential suspect, placed her under arrest and returned the money to the victims.
Tabatha King is charged with three counts of petit larceny as a hate crime because of the victim’s disabilities and that means they are felonies. She is also charged with two counts of misdemeanor petit larceny and one violation of possession of marijuana.
Her son was one of the skaters, according to Winn.
She was taken to the Albany County jail pending arraignment.
There may be other victims and police are encouraging anyone with any information or to lodge a complaint to call 518-783-2744.
