Pretenders
Thugs impersonating police officers pulled a driver over and stole his wallet under the guise of arresting him early on Feb. 21.
The victim told cops that he noticed that he was being tailed by a gray minivan at around 4 am. When he stopped at a red light at the corner of Fulton Street and Carlton Avenue, two men jumped out of the soccer-mom squad car and flashed two fake badges.
The “officers” aggressively asked the driver why he had not stopped at an earlier traffic light. Before he could answer, they slapped cuffs on him and dragged him into their vehicle.
With the victim in the car, the band of fakers drove around, but eventually uncuffed their dupe and let him go. That’s when he noticed that all of his money was missing.
Transit tricksters
Riders be warned, bus bandits were a-plenty this week, on the prowl for your pocket-sized valuables.
• A fast-handed thief took advantage of a bumpy ride and grabbed a fellow passenger’s wallet on the B38 on Feb. 17. The victim told cops that she discovered the crime when she tried to buy a Metrocard but found only an empty pocket. She thinks that the crime occurred when the bus was near the corner of Hudson and DeKalb avenues at around 9:20 pm.
• A touchy-feely perp grabbed a woman’s cellphone out of her coat pocket while she waited for a bus on the corner of Lafayette Avenue and Fulton Street on Feb. 18. The victim told police that the crook must have made the grab at around 8:50 am when he rubbed up against her.
Cell snatch
A cellphone snatcher cut a chatty pedestrian’s conversation short when he struck on the corner of Grand and Lafayette avenues on Feb. 19.
The victim told police that he was talking on the phone at around 3 pm when a man ran up behind him and grabbed the mobile device out of his hand.
— Claire Glass
