Caught in the act
A woman on Montague Street walked into her apartment last week to find a thief rooting through her things.
Police were told that the woman, who lived between Clinton and Henry streets, returned home at about 1:40 p.m. on November 2 and found the unidentified thief in her living room.
The thief reportedly had the woman’s laptop computer in his hands when she began yelling at him.
Police said that the thief dropped the computer and ran out of the apartment.
Cops were still looking for him as this paper went to press.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to come forward.
Calls can be made to the 84th Precinct at (718) 875-6811. All calls will be kept confidential.
Grocery notes
Cops are looking for a thief who reportedly robbed a Montague Street grocery with a threatening note.
According to police and published reports, the thief entered the store, located between Hicks and Henry streets, at about 1 p.m. on November 2.
The thief then handed the store clerk a note, announcing a robbery and ordering him to put the register’s receipts into a bag for him.
“Don’t try anything funny…I’m not alone,” he allegedly wrote.
Police were told that the thief fled with more than $3,000.
Knife tricks
An area senior managed to fend off a knife attack launched by his son when he grabbed the blade and snapped it in half
Officials said that the victim and his 53-year-old son were arguing inside their home on Bergen Street at 6:45 p.m. on November 2 when the younger man punched him in the face.
The son then ran into the kitchen and returned to the living room with a knife.
After swinging the blade at his father several times, the suspect lunged at the senior, who managed to disarm his son in an unexpected way.
Officials said that the victim suffered a scratch on his face, but was otherwise uninjured.
His 53-year-old son, who was not named, was taken into custody, charged with attempted assault, menacing, criminal possession of a weapon, and harassment.
Devilish delivery
A manager of the Cookies Department Store, 510 Fulton Street, went to police recently, claiming that someone had packed up and shipped off over $3,000 in children’s clothes to an unknown address.
Officials said an assortment of baby’s clothes and some school uniforms were among the items that were mysteriously shipped away sometime between August 20 and October 31.
Investigators later determined that Sasha Sellars, 34 — who was identified as a store employee — was the one who allegedly packaged up the items and sent them off to her husband, who brought some of the clothes to an area precinct last week.
Cops charged Sellars with grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property.
Fast times
An area high schooler was robbed of his wallet following a confrontation with a knife-wielding thief at the corner of Nevins and Schermerhorn streets.
The victim told police that he was nearing the corner at 4:15 p.m. on September 29 when two teenage males stopped him.
The thieves pulled a knife and took his wallet, which contained his high school ID and his Metrocard.
No injuries were reported.
Officials from the Kings County District Attorney’s office said that police caught up with one of the alleged thieves, identified as 17-year-old Carlos Roberts, and took him into custody, charging him with robbery, grand larceny, menacing and criminal possession of a weapon.
Gunpoint rob
Cops are looking for three thugs in connection with a gunpoint robbery near the corner of Henry and Amity streets.
The victim told police that she was walking past the corner just after 11:30 p.m. on October 24 when the four suspects surrounded her.
One of the thieves pulled a gun, demanding that she hand over her handbag.
Police were told that the thieves fled the area with the bag, which contained her credit cards, driver’s license, cell phone, keys and a gift card.
No injuries were reported.
The teenage thieves remained at large as this paper went to press. The woman freely admitted that she did not get a good look at them during the robbery.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to come forward.
Calls can be made to the 76th Precinct at (718) 834-3211. All calls will be kept confidential.
Electronic raid
Thieves broke into a home on Smith Street last week, removing thousands of dollars in electronics and jewelry.
Police said that a thief broke into the home sometime between 11 a.m. and 4:45 p.m. on October 20.
The thief broke in through the front door, breaking the front door lock in the process.
When the tenant returned home, she discovered that a Toshiba laptop and two Apple iPods were missing, as well as $60 in coins and an assortment of cufflinks, officials said.
Woman found dead
Cops are trying to figure out what killed an area woman found in a hallway of a Sands Street apartment building.
Officials said that they were called to 177 Sands Street at 9:30 a.m. on October 27, where they found the unresponsive woman, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
The woman was not identified, but described as a white or Hispanic woman in her thirties.
As this paper went to press, investigators have charged members of the city’s Medical Examiner’s office with determining just how the woman died.
Anyone with information regarding this case is encouraged to call authorities at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.
Wipe out graffiti
As the ongoing war against graffiti continues, a $500 reward is being offered to anyone with information regarding graffiti vandals in their neighborhoods.
The hefty reward is part of the city’s ongoing push to rid New York of graffiti vandals.
Graffiti is one of the leading quality of life complaints brought to police.
Anyone with information about graffiti vandalism is urged to contact either 311 or 911.
Halloween ghoul
A 17-year-old practiced a pretty odd trick-or-treating routine in Carroll Gardens last week.
Police said that Robert Strauss was taken into custody on charges that he robbed a younger teen of his property during a clash at the corner of Clinton and Kane streets.
Cops were told that the victim, 15, was walking past the corner with a group of friends at 5:30 p.m. on October 31 when Strauss allegedly crept up to them from behind.
Strauss allegedly struck the 15-year-old in the back of the head.
When the victim fell to the ground, the 17-year-old went through his pockets, removing his iPod and wallet, police alleged.
Police alleged that Strauss ran off, but was quickly apprehended by responding officers, who found him running past Kane and Hicks streets.
Cops charged Strauss with robbery and assault.
Police Officer Allen Yip of the 76th Precinct was credited with the arrest.
Punched for phone
A pony-tailed 14-year-old girl is being sought for an attempted robbery at the corner of West 9th and Court streets last week.
The victim, 13, told police that she was nearing the corner at 3:40 p.m. on October 29 as she returned home from school when the older girl approached and punched her in the face.
The 14-year-old then tried to take the phone by force, but the victim wouldn’t let it go.
The pony-tailed purloiner, who was wearing light blue jeans and a white waist length jacket, stormed off and hasn’t been seen since.
Kitchen window caper
A 37-year-old Congress Street resident told police that someone broke into her home recently, taking over $10,000 in camera and computer equipment.
Police were told that someone slipped into the apartment through a kitchen window between 1 and 2 p.m. on October 21.
When the victim returned home, she found the place ransacked.
The items taken included an Apple Mac Book, a Cigma lens, a Movada watch and two cameras.
Dell departure
A Dell desktop computer and its hard drive were removed form a Hicks Street home recently, police said.
The 43-year-old owner of the computer told police that someone forced their way into the apartment, although it was not clear just how the break-in took place.
The woman did admit that she did leave one of her windows “slightly ajar” when she left for the day.
The burglary reportedly took place between 8:30 a.m. and 7 p.m. on October 20.
Killed in Red Hook
A 30-year-old man was gunned down outside the Red Hook Houses early Friday morning, officials said this week.
Police were called to Bush Street near Clinton Street just before 12:30 a.m. on October 24, where they found the unidentified victim on the ground.
The man had suffered multiple gunshot wounds to the chest, officials said.
Paramedics rushed the man to Lutheran Medical Center, where he died of his injuries just before 2 a.m.
As of this writing, cops were looking for any leads that would direct them to the man’s killer.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is urged to contact the NYPD CrimeStoppers hotline at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls will be kept confidential.
Help wipe out graffiti
As the ongoing war against graffiti vandalism continues, cops are offering up to $500 in reward money to anyone who can lead them to graffiti vandals.
The hefty reward is part of the city’s ongoing push to rid New York of graffiti vandals.
Graffiti is one of the leading quality-of-life complaints brought to the NYPD.
The police believe there is a perception that if a community will tolerate graffiti, they will put up with other criminal activities, such as drug dealing and prostitution.
Anyone with information about graffiti vandalism is urged to contact either 311 or 911.
