Gunning for cell phones
Police may have apprehended one third of a three-man crew responsible for last week’s robbery spree in Red Hook.
Police said that the would-be mugger, an unidentified 14-year-old, was taken into custody at the corner of Coffey and Conover streets just before 9 p.m. on February 15 –a short time after he and two others robbed a man of his bike.
The teen reportedly had the two-wheeler on him when he was taken into custody.
But this isn’t the first time that this terrible trinity has struck.
Investigators believe that the suspects are connected to a similar robbery that took place that the corner of Richards and Dikeman streets about an hour earlier, when three men pulled a gun on a 32-year-old man.
But although they flashed their gun and demanded the property, the victim refused. The suspects ran off empty handed.
Three gun-toting thieves are also being sought for showing no love for their fellow man this Valentine’s Day.
A 56-year-old man told police was walking along Dikeman Street between Richards and Van Brunt streets at 9:30 p.m. February 14 when the three suspects approached.
“Throw all of your sh-t on the ground,” one of the thieves demanded as he flashed his gun.
The victim did as he was told and the thieves ran off with $120, some credit cards and the victim’s driver’s license, officials said.
As of this writing, the teen’s two accomplices were still at large.
Anyone with information regarding their whereabouts is urged to come forward.
Calls can be made to the 76th Precinct at (718) 834-3211. All calls will be kept confidential.
Bike bilker bust
Cops arrested a suspected bike thief last week after he was spotted rolling down Sackett Street with his spoils.
Officials alleged that Irving Osoria, 42, was seen riding one bike and pulling another set of wheels near Bond Street just before 2:30 p.m. on February 17.
Osoria brought some attention to himself when he seen rolling the wrong way down a one-way street, alleged officials, who recovered a stolen bike and a pair of bolt cutters when they put the brakes on his escape.
Cops charge him with criminal possession of stolen property and possession of burglar’s tools.
Trading up
A nimble-fingered thief managed to pluck a man’s wallet from his backpack as he shopped at Trader Joe’s last week.
The victim said that he had placed his backpack inside his shopping cart as her perused the isles of the store at 130 Court Street back on February 15.
He said he left the cart unattended for just a few moments but that was all the time the thief needed, said police, who added that the fiend palmed the wallet, as well as the $80 and debit card inside.
Close but no entry
Cops are trying to locate the thief who desperately tried to break into a Smith Street home near 4th Place last week.
Responding officers said that the thief was so intent on getting inside that he damaged the lock to the front door as the lady of the house went shopping on the afternoon of February 19.
But perhaps he was a bit overzealous — he damaged the lock so badly that he couldn’t open the door, cops said.
Hospitalized after mugging
A 28-year-old was rushed to Long Island College Hospital after five teenage thugs attacked him on Bond Street recently.
The victim said that he was nearing Baltic Street at 1:40 p.m. on February 13 when the thieves jumped him. They punched him in the face and ran off with his wallet, but not before kicking the man in the head several times.
Cops were still looking for the muggers as this paper went to press.
Carted off
The next time you go to get a hot dog from a street vendor, you might be served from stolen property.
Officials said that three food carts, the cheapest being $35,000 and the most expensive being $40,000 were removed from a storage facility on Bond Street near President Street.
The victim said that someone removed the locks to the storage shed where the carts were kept sometime between 8:30 p.m. on February 9 and 7:35 a.m. on February 11 — right at the height of last week’s storm.
So if you saw a guy with three hot dog carts as the snow fell, he wasn’t an ambitious businessman — he was the thief!
