Escaped NJ sex offender nabbed at shelter in trendy NYC neighborhood after chase, scuffle with cops
A “repetitive and compulsive” sex offender who busted loose while being transported to a New Jersey hospital has been nabbed at a Brooklyn homeless shelter, according to reports.
Nicholas Voutsas, 25 a Tier-2 registered Garden State sex offender, was spotted standing outside the Clay Street Shelter in Greenpoint shortly before 8 a.m. Monday, with the Department of Homeless Services then tipping off the NYPD, law enforcement sources told The Post.
Voutsas led cops on a four-block chase and got into a scuffle that sent four police officers to the hospital before he was taken into custody in front of 321 McGuinness Blvd., the sources said.
He is now facing second-degree assault charges for attacking the cops.
Voutsas was in custody in New Jersey on Thursday when he broke out of a health department van that was taking him to University Hospital in Newark, New Jersey state police said.
“As a result, the initial investigative agency, the New Jersey Human Services Police Department, charged Nicholas Voutsas with escape,” the department’s release said. “He was last seen in the area of University Hospital near South Range Avenue and Bergen Street in Newark, Essex County.”
The New Jersey sex offender registry lists Voutsas as a “moderate risk” to re-offend, a designation that means schools and child care facilities must be notified about his presence in the community.
Police have not provided details of the offense that had him placed on the registry.
New Jersey State Police confirmed online that Voutsas was back in custody, but on Wednesday a spokesperson for the department referred The Post to the NYPD for details of the arrest.
The NYPD referred questions to the Port Authority Police Department, which denied being involved.
Additional reporting by Amanda Woods
