Suspect in Port Chester Stop & Shop Theft Leads Police on Damaging Chase, Crashes Into Snowbank

PORT CHESTER, NY (January 30, 2026) — A 50-year-old woman from the Bronx faces multiple felony charges after police say she fled a larceny in progress at a Stop & Shop, intentionally struck vehicles and injured two motorists during a brief but destructive escape.

At about 12:30 p.m., Port Chester Police Department officers received a report of a larceny in progress at the Stop & Shop. While responding, officers observed a vehicle matching the suspect’s description leaving the scene.

Units stopped the vehicle and opened the door to have the suspect step out. The suspect veered to avoid officers and accelerated at a high speed onto North Main Street.

The vehicle became wedged between vehicles stopped in traffic at North Main Street and Westchester Avenue. The suspect again accelerated forward and back, nearly striking an officer, and intentionally drove into vehicles, causing damage, before fleeing.

Officers did not engage the driver in a pursuit due to the risk created.

An officer later located the vehicle on Boston Post Road and attempted to stop it, but the driver refused to stop. The vehicle attempted to make a U-turn and crashed into a snowbank, where the driver was apprehended.

The driver, identified as Tara Brown Birkinshaw, age 50, of the Bronx, N.Y., was transported and is being treated at a local hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.

Two motorists were injured due to the actions of the suspect and were transported to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Numerous vehicles, as well as a PCPD vehicle, were damaged by the defendant intentionally driving into them.

Birkinshaw was charged with multiple counts of criminal mischief stemming from the intentional damage, aggravated vehicle assault for injuring motorists while operating under the influence of narcotics, reckless endangerment, petit larceny, and a slew of vehicle and traffic charges.

“Unfortunately, this driver made a bad decision to make a larceny charge into something extremely worse and risked injury to the public and officers,” police said.

Police thanked the Rye Police Department for assistance during the incident.

This article was drafted with the aid of Grok, an AI tool by xAI, under the direction and editing of Robert Cox to ensure accuracy and adherence to journalistic standards.