Four of the brutal bikers – including an undercover cop – who participated in the motorcycle gang attack caught on video last September pleaded not guilty to gang assault and other charges Wednesday in Manhattan Supreme Court.
Detective Wojciech Braszczok, 32, walked into the courthouse with his head and face completely covered by a plaid scarf and brown hood to evade news photographers.
He’s one of 11 bikers charged in the vicious beatdown of Manhattan Internet honcho Alexian Lien in front of his terrified wife and infant daughter.
Clint Caldwell, James Kuehne and Kaliq Douglas also pleaded not guilty at their arraignments.
Justice Maxwell Riley raised Douglas’s bail from $25,000 to $50,000 bond despite his lawyer’s argument he has strong ties to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
“There’s no change in circumstance,” said attorney Morty Katz. “His grandmother, his uncle and his mother work for the DA’s Office.“This is a lot of money for him. He’s not a drug dealer or a Wall Street inside trader.”
Douglas’s family posted the higher bond and he walked out of court minutes later.
The incident erupted on September 29th when Lien was surrounded by the roaring mob as he drove his black SUV near 125th Street in Harlem.
After a confrontation, the bikers slashed the SUV’s tires and Lien peeled away, running over several bikers and critically injuring one in the process.
A swarm of irate motorcycle maniacs pursued him for 50 blocks northbound on the West Side Highway.
When Lien exited on 178th Street, the assailants stopped his SUV, yanked him out and savagely beat him as his family watched in horror.
Wojciech allegedly punched out the rear window of Lien’s Range Rover and is out on $150,000 bond.
All of the bikers, except Christopher Cruz, were indicted on a top charge of gang assault four which they face up to 25 years in prison.