Cellphone Thief Targets Teens In Sheepshead Bay & Manhattan Beach

Cops are searching for a man accused of a four-incident robbery spree in Sheepshead Bay and Manhattan Beach, who tricks victims into thinking they stole a cellphone in order to get them to comply.

The spree reportedly started last month on April 22 in front of 2452 East 24th Street around 2pm, said cops. The suspect accused two teens, 13 and 14 years old, of stealing a cellphone, demanding that they hand him their iPhone 7s to verify. And you can probably guess what happens next — he darts away with the phones.

Then, on April 26 at 2:30pm on the corner of Oriental Boulevard and Ocean Avenue, he struck again with the same trick, swiping another phone from a 27-year-old victim, said cops.

On Saturday, May 6 just before 7pm he nabbed another iPhone 7 from a 17-year-old victim on the corner of Avenue Y and Coyle Street. Lastly, on Friday May 12 he got away with two more iPhone 7s from a 16-year-old and a 13-year-old on the corner of Oriental Boulevard and Girard Street.

The suspect reportedly flees the scene in a black Nissan Altima and is seen wearing a Nike jacket and Nike Air Jordan sneakers.

Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577.