Lunatic Walks Into Starbucks On 86th Street With Pole, Smashes Laptop To Bits

A pipe-wielding lunatic, who appeared to be in his 50s, smashed a random man’s laptop at Starbucks on 86th Street (1971 86th Street) today before fleeing on foot.

I happened to be at said Starbucks at 4:40pm, when suddenly a loud crash rang out and confused voices from the back of the store screamed, “Get him!” Stunned customers tried to chase the kook down the street, but no one was willing to get too close, as he was still carrying the five-foot-long pole. The pipe wielder quickly disappeared around the corner of 20th Avenue.

I had vaguely noticed a man pointing into the front window of the coffee shop earlier, but when he entered a few moments later – like most customers – I was too absorbed by my laptop to notice he was holding the long metal pole in his hand.

The victim, who asked not to be named, told me he had seen the man pointing at him, “I was like, what the fuck? Who are you?”

Minutes later, the crazy man smashed his victim’s laptop to bits.

A barista told us the man was a regular and has a history of behaving erratically.

“I knew that guy was nuts,” she said. “He’s in here all day and all night. I saw him walk in with a stick, and I said, ‘Hey, what are you doing?’ I saw him looking through the window. I knew he was going to go in and hurt somebody.”

A manager walked around the store asking people if they were alright. Parents hugged their children. Police were called. Then, after several minutes of confusion and chatter over what had transpired, customers turned back to their laptops and it was as if nothing had happened at all.