Creep with 13 priors cut loose by judge after alleged sex crime spree targeting teens, women

New York Post

22-05-2025

An unhinged creep with more than a dozen arrests who was charged last week for a sick Brooklyn sex crime spree was dumped back on the street by a perp-friendly judge who said he at least showed up at scheduled court dates for his many past cases, The Post has learned.
Johnelle Beckum, 44 – who had 13 prior busts – is accused of groping two girls, 17 and 14, as well as a 55-year-old woman, and masturbating in front of another woman, 44, during a sickening May 14 spree that spanned two-and-a-half hours across Park Slope, cops and prosecutors said.
But Beckum was granted supervised release Friday by Criminal Court Judge Philip Tisne, over Assistant District Attorney Daniel Berkowitz's request for $75,000 cash or $150,000 bond, according to a transcript of the appearance obtained by The Post.
'The people have asked for bail, and [it is] a very close case for me, sir, because I take these allegations very seriously,' Tisne said as he addressed Beckum in court. 'These are very serious allegations. You're facing serious time. You do have a criminal history.'
Criminal Court Judge Philip Tisne granted supervised release to alleged serial groper Johnelle Beckum, 44, who had about a dozen prior arrests.
Philip Tisne / LinkedIn
'You have had a lot of open cases, but I am persuaded by the fact that you haven't missed a court date since…2005,' he added.
Beckum began his shameless string of crimes around 7:30 a.m. at 9th Street and 4th Avenue in Park Slope, where he allegedly crept up to a 17-year-old girl and said, 'I want to touch you,' according to cops and the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office.
He squeezed her buttocks before taking off, cops said.
About a half-hour later, Beckum allegedly targeted a 13-year-old girl on the landing of the staircase leading to the Manhattan-bound R train at the same intersection, cops said.
'Tie your shoe, come with me, we are going to have sex before you go to school,' Beckum eerily told the teen before grabbing her arm and attempting to lead her up the stairs, according to authorities and prosecutors.
'Tie your shoe, come with me, we are going to have sex before you go to school,' Beckum eerily told one of his victims, a 13-year-old girl, prosecutors said.
Google Maps
The fiend only let go when his terrified victim screamed, cops said.
But that didn't end his disturbing spree – about two hours later, Beckum allegedly walked into a store on Fifth Avenue near Degraw Street, where he approached a 55-year-old woman and told her to take her clothes off, prosecutors said.
He touched her breast as he caressed himself under his pants, cops said.
About a half-hour later, Beckum made his way inside a physical therapy practice on Fifth Avenue near Douglass Street, where he asked for a massage, prosecutors said.
When the receptionist, a 44-year-old woman, told him to wait because she was on a call, Beckum allegedly exposed himself and began masturbating in the waiting room, which is visible from the street, the DA's office said.
Surveillance video recovered from both the office and the store matched the description provided by the two teen victims, who were on their way to school nearby, sources said.
Beckum was arrested when 78th Precinct cops spotted him around 6:40 p.m. at Fourth Avenue and Ninth Street – the same spot where he allegedly began the lewd spree – recognizing him from a 2023 robbery and forcible touching arrest, according to the sources.
He was slapped with multiple charges, including forcible touching, lewdness and acting in a manner injurious to a child, police said.
Beckum's most recent prior bust was for allegedly punching a 62-year-old man, a stranger, in the face, and trying to throw him onto the tracks at the Flushing Avenue J/M station on March 9, 2024, cops said.
After that arrest, he was found unfit to stand trial and sent to a mental health program – where he had two initial appearances, but ultimately decided to cop out of the program.
That choice landed him back in a pre-trial court room on April 10, where he pleaded guilty to second-degree attempted assault and Judge Herbert Moses released him on his own recognizance pending sentencing, sources said.
It was not immediately clear whether prosecutors had any objection to that release. His next appearance in that case is scheduled for June 9, records show.
That subway assault case came up again in the courtroom as Tisne reviewed Beckum's latest arrest in the sickening Park Slope spree.
'You have open cases where you've been making your court dates,' Tisne said. 'Including an open indictment that charges, I think, crimes that have more significant exposure than this case.'
Beckum's other 'most recent cases' were 'resolved' when he was found unfit to stand trial, according to Tisne.
Beckum's Legal Aid attorney, Luke Schram, acknowledged his client's psychiatric history in court.
'He does have some mental health issues, as shown in the statement notice, where he's asking for medication,' Schram said. 'He denies these charges and will come to court on his own accord, but we would consent to supervised release if there's any concern regarding his ability to come to court.'
Schram's argument was enough to convince Tisne – who placed him on Tier 2, Level 5 supervised release, 'the highest level of supervision that we offer,' the judge said.
Tisne explained that Beckum would be required to check in with Brooklyn Justice Initiatives, the organization that runs the supervised release program, once a week.
'If you don't do the intake with them before you leave the courthouse, here today, a warrant will issue for your arrest,' Tisne said. 'So, make sure you do the intake.'
'BJI offers a series of programs, sir,' the judge added. 'If during the intake they recommend that there are certain programs that they think you should do because they think they will be helpful to you, it's my order that you do them.'
Tisne also ordered that Beckum have no contact with the four victims of his pervy spree – which his attorney said would be no problem because they are strangers.
His next appearance on the new case is scheduled for Sept. 18.
A law enforcement source who was unhappy with Tisne's move to release Beckum said such actions are not uncommon for the judge.
'It appears that this judge tends to release individuals with mental health issues,' the source said. 'That's not helping them and the people around them.'
Tisne, one of the Manhattan prosecutors assigned to the controversial 'hush money' case against Donald Trump, has only been on the bench since January, according to his LinkedIn.
Back in February, Tisne also granted supervised release to Rondail Henry, 44 – a vagrant with 19 busts under his belt accused of stabbing a 15-year-old boy with a corkscrew in an unprovoked Brooklyn subway attack.
Prosecutors had asked that Henry be held on $20,000 cash bail, a $40,000 bond or a $100,000 partially secured bond.
Police said most of Henry's prior arrests were for petit larceny, possession of stolen property, fare evasion and violating an order of protection.
'The cops can't keep playing this catch-and-release game,' one frustrated law enforcement source said at the time. 'At some point the judicial [system] has to do their part before the 20th arrest is a homicide that we can't take back.'