Manhattan prosecutors are trying to force an international man of mystery being held in a weapons case to give up his DNA so they can pin down his identity.
When he was busted on St. Mark's Place with a dagger in his belt and a backpack containing guns and a silencer, cops booked the suspect as James O'Donnell.
Investigators found more weapons in a mini-storage unit connected to him last March and he's being held on $2 million bail.
He was hauled before a judge Thursday as prosecutors took another stab at figuring out who he is and where he's from.
"This is a very strange case," Manhattan Supreme Court Justice L. Bart Stone said. "The People are absolutely uncertain as to his identity."
Officials have only been able to trace O'Donnell, who spoke in court with what appeared to be an Irish accent, to Germany.
Cops there have a file on him with up to 20 arrests. Interpol reported he lived in Germany in the 1990s and early 2000s.
Officials here have found no record of him through fingerprints or other methods, according to one source.
"I have no idea where he's traveled in these times of terrorist attacks," the judge said.
O'Donnell, who has been uncooperative with New York authorities, told the judge he's served in the military for two years, but did not say where.
"In 2007, I joined the military," he said.
"My identity could be vouched for by them," he continued, adding cryptically, "I've already been investigated by them."
Assistant District Attorney Robert Walker said the city medical examiner's office is prepared to run DNA tests on weapons found in the South Street Seaport storage unit - but first they need a swab from O'Donnell to show he handled them.
O'Donnell faces a litany of gun charges for the weapons, including a .22-caliber pistol, a 9-mm handgun, silencers, an electronic stun gun and three daggers, court documents show.
His lawyer, Howard Simmons, opposed the prosecutors' efforts, saying the German dossier on O'Donnell means he's no longer "an ethereal figure."
The judge disagreed.
"He is an ethereal figure," Stone said, adding that the only way to establish the man's identity is through DNA.
Stone put off a decision until February and offered O'Donnell the option of pleading guilty the to all charges in the indictment.
The guy has been held since March and they haven't obtained a warrant to perform a DNA test? What are they waiting for?
ReplyDeleteInternational hit man? If he worked for the government you would never hear about this story
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