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Police Blotter (The Villager, Chelsea Now, Downtown Express), Week of May 16, 2019

cuffs
The Upper West Side crime blotter

First Precinct

 

Cases case

The Soho Apple Store was reportedly robbed by four young men on Sun., May 12, at 3:30 p.m.

Police say these guys cased the Soho Apple Store for phone cases, then stole them. (Courtesy N.Y.P.D.)

Two employees said that four men tried leaving the store, at 103 Prince St., with 15 $130 iPhone cases with built-in battery packs. When two employees tried to stop them, one of the thieves pushed one of the workers against the door and left.

The employee was uninjured.

Police said the quartet were all young black males around age 18. The guy said to have pushed the worker was 5 feet 10 inches tall and 170 pounds, wearing a black sweatsuit. Another wore black sweatpants and a black sweatshirt. Another sidekick sported a black shirt and a red jacket. The fourth alleged thief was clad in a gray Champion-logo sweatshirt and sweatpants with black sneakers.

 

Students mugged

Police said two men robbed a pair of Borough of Manhattan Community College students on Mon., April 29, at 3:35 p.m.

A tall order: These guys, both around 6-foot-5, allegedly mugged two B.M.C.C. students. (Courtesy N.Y.P.D.)

According to the police report, the two male students, ages 22 and 23, were walking to class when the suspects allegedly approached and separated them.

The older male was allegedly forced into the vestibule of the TD Bank on the corner of Greenwich and Chambers Sts. by one of the perps and forced to withdraw $20 from the ATM.

The younger of the two reportedly gave $10 to the other suspect on the assumption he would receive change in return. When the alleged robber began to walk away, the student confronted him but was slapped across the face, leaving him with a swollen and bloody lip.

The two suspects are described as black and roughly 6 feet 5 inches tall.

 

Inhospitable visit

The offices of Culinary Concepts Hospitality Group, at 102 Franklin St., were reportedly burglarized Fri., May 3, between 4 a.m. and 5 a.m.

The suspect is believed to have gained access to the building by climbing scaffolding and entering an unlocked window. He then reportedly placed $11,400 worth of items, including five laptops and a digital camera, inside a garbage bag and shopping cart, which were inside the office, and exited via the freight elevator.

The suspect is described as black, age 40, 5 foot 8 inches tall, weighing 150 pounds, with short hair.

 

Le Pain iPads

Two iPads were reportedly stolen after hours from the Le Pain Quotidien at 85 Broad St. on Sat., May 4, between 11:15 p.m. and 11:30 p.m.

According to police, surveillance footage shows a white Hispanic man forcibly gaining entry to the office building through the bike-storage room before exiting about 15 minutes later with the devices. The business reported that he was unable to gain access to cash due to it all being locked in a safe overnight.

The perp was last seen wearing a baseball cap, gray shorts, black sneakers and a red shirt.

 

Police say this man tried to break into an apartment building at 98 Thompson St. (Courtesy N.Y.P.D.)

Thompson try

The live-in super at 98 Thompson St. told police he saw a man trying to break in to the apartment building on Wed., May 8, around 12:15 a.m.

The suspect, unsuccessful in gaining access to the building, allegedly tried opening the door with a plastic card before slamming the door’s glass window and cracking it. He fled on a bike soon after.

Police described the suspect as a 5-foot-8-inches-tall black man with a short haircut, last seen wearing a black sweatshirt and black jeans.

 

Fifth Precinct

 

Grand St. grope

Police said that on Thurs., April 18, around 8:36 a.m., in the subway station at Chrystie and Grand Sts., a 17-year-old female was a passenger on the train when an unidentified male grabbed her buttocks. The groper fled in unknown direction. The victim was uninjured.

A photo of the alleged Grand St. subway groper. (Courtesy N.Y.P.D.)

The suspect is described as a male Asian in his 30s, last seen wearing a dark-colored jacket.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). Tips can also be submitted on the CrimeStoppers Web site at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM, on Twitter @NYPDTips or by texting to 274637 (CRIMES) and then entering TIP577.

 

Sixth Precinct

 

Hateful attack

Police arrested a man who they say spat gay slurs at a couple before attacking them at the Bleeker St. subway station on Sun., March 31, at 6:40 p.m.

One of the victims reported that he was holding hands with his boyfriend while walking toward the turnstiles area. He reported then being approached by a man who called the couple “faggots” and “homosexuals” before punching both of them in the face. One of the victims chased the attacker out of the station where he fled to parts unknown.

One victim suffered a bloody nose and swelling on the right side of his face. The other reported redness to his face following the attack.

The perpetrator left his jacket, which contained hypodermic needles, at the station, police said.

Ryan Sides, 38, was charged with third-degree assault on Fri., May 10.

 

 Outnumbered

A 17-year-old Chelsea resident said he was assaulted by six other youths on the corner of Seventh Ave. and W. 12th St. on Sat., March 16, around 6:45 p.m., according to cops.

The victim reported being followed by the group, who demanded his possessions. He tried running away, but the gang caught up to him, threw him to the ground and began kicking him. The attackers fled after taking his AirPods, which fell out of his ears during the scuffle.

Police arrested a 15-year-old on Mon., May 6, in connection with the incident.

 

DSW collar

The DSW shoe store on the third floor of 40 E. 14th St. in Union Square was robbed Sat., May 11, around 10:45 p.m., police said.

Pedro Aguayo, 55, attempted to leave the place with three items worth a total of $167 but was caught by employees. Less than an hour later at the store, he was charged with petit larceny and criminal possession of stolen property. He had previously signed a no-trespassing affidavit with the store on May 4.

 

Wallet snatch

A 52-year-old man told police he was robbed near the corner of Grove and W. Fourth Sts. on Thurs., April 11, around 12:30 a.m.

He reported being approached by a man who asked him a question. During that interaction, another man allegedly stole a wallet containing $100 from his pocket. The thief subsequently tried using the victim’s credit card at multiple locations.

Police arrested Deshawn Donely, 55, for robbing the man.

 

Ninth Precinct

 

Sexual assault

Police said that on Mon., May 6, around 2:30 a.m., an unidentified male entered a residential building near E. 13th St. and Avenue B, along with a 37-year-old male victim. Once inside, the man entered the victim’s apartment and attempted to sexually assault him. The attacker then removed a computer laptop and tablet, around 25 computer hard drives, a jacket, a wallet, an ID and keys before fleeing on Avenue B.

A video, above, of a man who tried to sexually assault an East Village resident in his apartment and then robbed the place of computer gear and more. (Courtesy N.Y.P.D.)

The individual is described as Hispanic, around 5 feet 11 inches tall and 150 pounds, with long black hair worn in a tall bun on top of his head. He was last seen wearing a black-and-blue jacket with a multicolored pattern on the back.

Anyone with information should contact the CrimeStoppers Hotline.

 

10th Precinct

Grumpy incident

A harassment violation was filed with police after an incident outside Cafe Grumpy, at 224 W. 20th St., between Seventh and Eighth Aves., police said.

On Tues., April 23, at 11 a.m., a 57-year-old man was sitting in front of the cafe with his dog, when an unknown man approached him and his sidekick, and then threw water at him.

“I’ll kill you and your dog,” he allegedly said, scaring the victim. There were no injuries.

The harasser is described as white, 30 years old and 6 feet 2 inches tall, with close-cut hair.

 

Food freak-out

There was a criminal mischief incident at Treehaus MiMA natural foods store, on Sat., May 11, around 8:30 a.m., according to a police report.

At the store, at 470 W. 42nd St., at Tenth Ave., a man took food, and when he was approached by a male employee, allegedly threw the hot food at him. He then went outside the place and threw chairs at a glass window, damaging two chairs valued at $400 each.

“I’m going to kill you,” the guy reportedly said. The suspect is described as black and around age 30. The employee was not injured.

 

One of the suspects who stole a senior woman’s phone in Chelsea, according to cops. (Courtesy N.Y.P.D.)
The second mugger who teamed up to steal a Chelsea senior’s phone, police say. (Courtesy N.Y.P.D.)

Stole her phone

Two men are wanted for robbing a woman on W. 30th St. between 10th and 11th Aves., police said.

On Wed., April 17, around 7:15 p.m., a 43-year-old woman was reportedly approached by the pair. One of them put his arm around the woman’s neck and took her cell phone from her hand. Both perps then fled toward the High Line park. The woman suffered bruises but refused medical treatment at the scene.

The suspects are both described as Hispanic and about 5 feet 8 inches tall. One reportedly wore a blue shirt and black pants. Police said the other had a thin build, and wore a black jacket, camouflage pants and black sneakers.

 

Rico Burney,
Gabe Herman
and Lincoln Anderson