Crime Watch

Ladder Night Sinner

A man was awakened at night by an intruder. Just after midnight on Saturday, December 7, an 82-year-old man was sleeping in his apartment on West 77th Street, when an unknown man entered the second-floor apartment through the window, using a ladder to climb up from the outside rear of the building. No property was taken, and the intruder fled through the same window while carrying the ladder. There was no video of the incident.

Rude Awakening

At 12:45 AM on Sunday, December 8, a 53-year-old man was sleeping in bed with his 45-year-old wife in their apartment on West 84th Street, when he awoke to discover a man with a flashlight approximately three feet away. The 53-year-old chased after the other man and lost sight of him in the stairway of his building. The sleeper told police that he and his wife usually left the door to their apartment shut but unlocked, because they live in a doorman building. A nanny cam in their living room showed the burglar walking through the room. The sleeper said that when he returned to the apartment, he discovered that property had been taken from the kitchen counter and adjacent room. A camera in the building lobby showed the perpetrator exiting the building. The victim told police that there had been an unauthorized charge on his debit card at Paulino's Pizza for approximately $35. The items taken from the apartment were $2,200 in cash, an Apple iPad valued at $1,450, a Louis Vuitton leather wallet, a New York State driver's license, and various debit and credit cards. The total haul amounted to $3,650.

Santa Fe Away

A man's SUV was stolen from West End Avenue. At 11 PM on Saturday, December 7, a 70-year-old man parked his SUV on West End Avenue. The next day at 8 PM, he found that the vehicle was missing. An impound check and a police canvass of the area both proved negative. The stolen vehicle was a red 2007 Hyundai Santa Fe with New York plates, valued at $35,000.

Nothing Personal

Three men stole merchandise from a clothing store on Columbus Avenue. At 12:30 PM on Saturday, December 7, three men ages 33, 30, and 40 respectively entered the store, before one of the men took a bag out, so all three could put store merchandise into the bag. Store video showed two store employees witnessing the incident. Two of the men fled on foot northbound on Columbus Avenue, until they jumped into an older model green Toyota Camry with New York plates at 69th Street and Broadway. During the robbery, one of the men had told store employees, "Do not come near." The second perpetrator had said, "It is not about you. Just stay away." And the third said, "It is not personal." The total of the shoplifting spree came to $16,260.

Docked for Documents

A man was arrested after trying to withdraw money from a bank with forged documents. At 1:55 PM on Friday, December 6, a 23-year-old man entered a bank on Broadway, approached a teller, and handed the teller an obviously forged California driver's license and matching Social Security card with his picture and another person's name and date of birth. The teller was familiar with California licenses and immediately recognized this one as a forgery, not to mention that the date of birth made the defendant 69 years old, when he was obviously a young man. The defendant said he had lost his bank card and signed a bank withdrawal slip requesting $2,500. A homeless man, he was subsequently detained, arrested, and charged with attempted grand larceny.