Crime Report: Burglary at a Laundromat, Robberies in Fort Greene Park and Smartphone Thefts

Two men held up a worker at gunpoint and tied him to a chair at the Wash and Play Lotto Laundromat at 81 Lafayette Avenue on Feb. 4 at 9 p.m. The robbers came in with two laundry bags and left with a total of $2,500 worth of property, including the worker’s iPhone 4, the security camera and cash register. The worker was not injured, police said.

Including the above crime, 14 felonies and one arrest were reported in the 88th Precinct between Feb. 3 and Feb. 9. Locals also reported robberies in Fort Greene Park, home break-ins and smartphone thefts.

Robberies in Fort Greene Park
-A 23-year-old man was held up at gunpoint in Fort Greene Park near the stairwell at the Willoughby Avenue and Saint Edwards Street entrance on Feb. 3 at 6 p.m. He told police that a man showed him a black gun and took his Samsung Galaxy 3S smartphone and wallet. Police searched but did not find the thief.

-Two men robbed a 27-year-old man as he walked in Fort Greene Park near Saint Edwards Street and Willoughby Avenue on Feb. 9 at 5:45 p.m. He told police that one man grabbed him by the neck, pretended to stick a gun in his side and told him to give up his iPhone and wallet – which contained his Ontario driver’s license, $10 in cash, a Chase credit card and a PC Financial debit card – to his accomplice. Police searched but could not find the thieves.

Robbery
Police arrested LaJazz Stokely, 39, for allegedly punching a 37-year-old woman in the face and robbing her of $300 in the Ingersoll Houses on Feb. 6 at 12:36 a.m. The woman told police she had gone to a friend’s apartment that night and once she was inside the apartment, Stokely punched her. Emergency Medical Technicians treated her at the scene.

Stokely is charged with robbery in the second and third degrees, grand larceny in the fourth degree, petit larceny, criminal possession of stolen property in the fifth degree, menacing in the third degree and harassment in the second degree, according to the Kings County District Attorney’s office.

Lottery Ticket Theft
A 26-year-old man told police he was robbed of his lottery tickets at 3:25 a.m. on Feb. 6. He said that he had come out of a store at Fulton Street and Clinton Avenue, where he had bought the tickets, when a man started to walk with him, asking for money. The beggar then opened his coat, showing what looked like the handle of a gun, and asked the man if he had ever been shot. When the man said he didn’t have any money, the thief ransacked his bag and took his lottery tickets. A token clerk at the Clinton-Washington station told police the thief took a C train uptown.

Smartphone Thefts
-A 17-year-old boy told police that two men robbed him at knife point of his iPhone shortly after he left Bishop Laughlin Memorial High School, 357 Clermont Avenue, at about 3 p.m. on Feb. 7. One of the robbers flashed a knife and said, “Give me your stuff or I’m going to poke you,” the youth said. Police were unable to track the phone.

-A 16-year-old boy told police that someone followed him into a Dunkin Donuts store at 15 Flatbush Avenue and stole his Samsung Galaxy S3 on Feb. 7 at 6:30 p.m.

Jacket Theft
A 12-year-old boy told police two men stole his Tommy Hilfiger jacket on Feb. 7 at Flatbush Avenue Extension and DeKalb Avenue as he was walking to the train after school at 4 p.m. He said he had spilled something on his jacket and had taken it off to clean it when two men snatched it from his hands and pushed him to the ground.

Home Break-ins
-A 43-year-old man told police surprised a burglar in his house on Adelphi Street and Park Avenue on Feb. 4 at 12:30 p.m. He told police that he was at home when he heard a noise in the living room and went to investigate. He found a man wearing a navy blue jacket, who said, “I’m looking for Jessica,” and left. Police said that the lock on the door showed signs of tampering.

-A 43-year-old woman told police that her apartment on Greene Avenue and Grand Avenue had been broken into while she was at work on Feb. 4. She told police that an Apple MacBook, a red leather wallet with her New York State driver’s license and a Bank of America credit card, and a silver necklace had been stole. There was no sign of forced entry, police said.

Theft from Bank Account
A 79-year-old woman told police on Feb. 7 that someone had withdrawn $300 from her Chase bank account. She discovered the missing funds when she tried to withdraw money on Feb. 3 and was informed there were insufficient funds to cover the transaction.

Credit Card Theft
A 66-year-old man told police on Feb. 9 that he discovered his Visa credit card missing from his wallet when he came back from India and that someone had charged $1,200 to his account.

Attempted Car Theft
A 44-year-old woman told police that when she saw two thieves sitting in the front seat of her 1996 Honda Civic at 5:15 a.m. on Feb. 5, she jumped in front of the car and scared them off with “a few choice words.”  Police searched around where the car was parked on Saint Edwards Street on Park Avenue, but couldn’t find the culprits.

Car Theft
A 56-year-old woman told police that she had parked her 1998 Honda Civic at Washington Park and DeKalb Avenue on Feb. 5 at 9:15 a.m. and when she came back the next morning it was missing. Police searched but could not find the car