Crime
The five suspects, including two juveniles, were arrested last week for allegedly breaking into cars.
Outnumbered and struggling to reach backup, a Boston police officer apparently drew his gun on a group of five suspects detained for allegedly breaking into cars at a garage in Post Office Square last week, according to video clips of the incident.
The footage shows only a portion of the tense Sept. 27 exchange, which resulted in all five suspects, including two juveniles, being arrested on trespassing and breaking and entering charges, among other counts.
“We got stuck, and we were trying to leave,” a female voice shouts in one clip posted to social media. “And he has a gun in his hand, and we’re all underage.”
The officer then instructs the group to “get the f*** away from that knife,” prompting the girl to ask, “what knife?”
“Get down on the f***ing ground right now. Get down!” the officer yells as one of the suspects rises to their feet. The video then cuts back to the officer pointing his firearm at the group. In another clip, the same officer appears to drag one of the suspects across the garage floor.
A Boston Police Department report sheds further light on the chaotic scene. According to the report, Officer Tyler Ostholthoff came across the five suspects while responding to a report of car break-ins inside the downtown garage shortly after 8 p.m. The suspects were reportedly dressed in black, and one of them was wearing a face mask and dark sunglasses.
Ostholthoff purportedly recognized two juveniles wanted in connection with a Sept. 5 assault and battery, according to Boston police. He ordered the group to sit on the ground and told them they were being detained, the police report states.
But when Ostholthoff tried to radio other units for backup, he found there was no radio reception in the garage. For several minutes, Ostholthoff repeated his “strong verbal commands” to the group while walking back and forth to his cruiser to try to radio for help, according to the police report.
“At this point the suspects started to stand and slowly walk away,” the report states, adding that at least one suspect was protesting the stop and trying to rally the others to flee.
Two more officers eventually arrived and helped detain the group. When Ostholthoff went to take one of the males into custody, however, one of the other suspects — 20-year-old Tina Ruffin — allegedly jumped on the officer’s back and grabbed at his face, scratching him. Boston EMS responded to the scene to evaluate Ostholthoff, per the report.
Additional officers who responded to the garage around 8:49 p.m. heard a “loud commotion and yelling” coming from the third level, where they found Ostholthoff accelerating toward the ramp in an unmarked cruiser, according to the report. At Ostholthoff’s urging, they scrambled down the ramp and found the other two officers struggling to detain the suspects.
According to the report, the officers were still fighting to get radio reception and had run out of handcuffs.
Police searched the garage and reportedly found five unlocked vehicles whose center consoles and glove boxes had been opened and their contents strewn about. Ruffin allegedly dropped several credit cards to the ground during the arrest, and another suspect, 18-year-old Jaden Charles, purportedly had a stolen wallet in his pocket, according to the police report.
All five, including the two juveniles, were arrested on charges of breaking and entering vehicles, receiving stolen property, trespassing, and resisting arrest. Ruffin was also charged with assault and battery on a police officer. Boston police did not identify the juveniles.
Ruffin and another suspect, 18-year-old Timothy Bingham, both pleaded not guilty and were released on prior recognizance with orders to stay away from the parking garage. Charles also pleaded not guilty but was ordered held at Suffolk County Jail in lieu of having posted $500 cash bail, court records show.
All three are due back in court Oct. 29. Their attorneys were not immediately available for comment Tuesday.
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https://www.boston.com/news/crime/2025/10/07/boston-parking-garage-arrests-video/