Mount Vernon man arrested for swiping diamond ring

WEST NYACK – A Mount Vernon man was arrested and charged with grand larceny last week after an investigation into the brazen theft of a diamond ring from a store in the Palisades Center Mall late last month.

Davante Dempsey, 22, was arrested at his Mount Vernon home after he was positively identified as the man responsible for the theft. According to police, Dempsey approached a 25-year-old employee at Kay Jewelers in the mall on the night of July 27 and asked to see a diamond ring in a display case.

After the employee removed the ring from its case, Dempsey grabbed it from his hand and ran out of the store. Detectives with Clarkstown Police arrived at the scene shortly thereafter to dust for fingerprints, interview and present witnesses with a photo array of potential suspects and review security footage.

Though the investigation went on for about a month, police eventually used the prints and footage to identify Dempsey as the culprit. He was charged with third and fourth degree grand larceny and third degree criminal possession of stolen property, all felonies, with bail set at $25,000.