It's not easy to bear witness to the downward spiral of a childhood hero.

It wasn't that long ago that Cookie Monster, whose last known address is somewhere on Sesame Street, was the prime suspect in the brazen theft of a 44-pound bronze cracker, and now he stands accused of pushing a 2-year-old boy.

NBC 4 New York reports that a Connecticut woman claims an aggressive man dressed as Cookie Monster in New York City's Times Square  picked up her son and encouraged her to snap a photo of the two of them. Afterward, he allegedly demanded $2 from the woman, who said that she would need to get cash from her husband.

She claims that response triggered a torrent of profanity from Cookie Monster -- "I cannot even repeat what he was saying," the woman said -- who then pushed the child to the ground.

The man in the blue-fur suit, 33-year-old Osvaldo Quiroz-Lopez, was arrested and arraigned Monday on charges of endangering the welfare of a child. His work partner, who dresses as Elmo (no joke!), proclaimed his friend's innocence. Count von Count was overheard saying, "One! That's up to one year in jail! Ah ... ah ... ah!"

(via Gawker)