Crime Report: Cell Phone Robberies, Brooklyn Tech Break-Ins and Thefts from Cars and Trucks

A 23-year-old man told police that he and his roommate were taking the C train home from Manhattan on Aug. 19 at 3:25 a.m. when a man boarded the train at the Clinton-Washington Avenues station, punched him in the face and attempted to take his phone. When the passenger’s roommate tried to defend him, the mugger allegedly slammed the roommate to the ground, pressed him against the wall, gestured that he had a gun and grabbed his cell phone. Police arrested Daud Charles, 20, on the train, and recovered the roommate’s cell phone.

Charles was charged with robbery in the second degree, grand larceny in the fourth degree, attempted robbery in the third degree, criminal possession of stolen property in the fourth degree, assault in the third degree, petit larceny, attempted grand larceny in the fourth degree, criminal possession of stolen property in the third degree, menacing in the third degree, attempted petit larceny and harassment in the second degree, according to the Kings County District Attorney’s office.

Including the crime above, 28 felonies and six arrests were reported in the 88th Precinct last week, compared to 25 felonies and nine arrests last week. Cell phone robberies dominated the reports this week, with thefts from cars and trucks coming in second. Two late-night or early morning break-ins were reported at Brooklyn Technical High School last week. In one, electronics were stolen; it was not immediately clear if anything was taken in the other.

Street Assault

James Boy, 68, was arrested after he allegedly punched a 40-year-old man in the face and hit him on the shoulder and arm with a piece of plywood on Park Avenue at Ryerson Street on Aug. 20 at about 4 p.m.

Boy was charged with assault in the second and third degrees, menacing in the second degree, criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree, menacing in the third degree and harassment  in the second degree, according to the Kings County District Attorney’s office.

Cell Phone Robberies

-On Aug. 22 at 1:30 a.m., a man allegedly hit a woman in the face and snatched her Samsung Galaxy cell phone on North Portland Avenue on the grounds of the Walt Whitman Houses. The woman told police that her attacker fled toward a North Elliott Walk alleyway. Police searched the area but could not find the woman’s cell phone or the thief.

-A man with a bandanna hiding his face allegedly pointed a greenish-silver gun at a 25-year-old woman, pushed her to the ground, grabbed her tote bag and cell phone and fled north on Greene Avenue on Aug. 22 at about 2:40 a.m. The tote bag contained a notebook and Chase credit and debit cards. Police searched the area but could not find the thief or the woman’s belongings.

-A man allegedly snatched a 36-year-old woman’s iPhone and ran on Willoughby Avenue at Saint Edwards Street on Aug. 20 at 8:20 a.m. The woman told police that she was not able to see the thief, and that her phone does not have tracking software.

-On Aug. 22 at 1:30 a.m., a thief allegedly grabbed a 49-year-old woman’s cell phone, which she was using to play a game, as she waited for a bus on Myrtle Avenue at Navy Street. The thief ran eastbound on Myrtle Avenue into the Ingersoll Houses, the woman told police. Officers searched the area and could not find the thief or the woman’s phone.

-A 30-year-old woman told police that she was walking on Fulton Street near Vanderbilt Avenue on Aug. 20 at about 5:45 p.m. when her ex-boyfriend snatched her cell phone and refused to return it. The woman added that her boyfriend had been following her to her daughter’s daycare and her house.

Richard Stround, 44, was charged with grand larceny in the fourth degree, petit larceny, criminal possession of stolen property in the fifth degree, endangering the welfare of a child, menacing in the third degree and harassment in the second degree, according to the Kings County District Attorney’s office.

Theft in Subway Station

On Aug. 21 at 2:15 p.m., a man followed a 47-year-old woman from the MetroCard vending machine to the clerk’s booth in the Clinton-Washington Avenues subway station, displayed a knife, snatched her gold chain necklace and fled, cops said. Police searched the area but could not find the thief, who was about 35 years old, bald, clean-shaven and wearing gray pants and a blue T-shirt, police said.

Double Assaults

On Aug. 25 at about 1 a.m., Arthur T. Myrick, 31, allegedly punched a woman in the face at a North Oxford Walk apartment in the Walt Whitman Houses. Cops responded and chased Myrick, who pushed an officer down the apartment’s stairs, dislocating his right shoulder, according to police.

Myrick was charged with assault in the second and third degrees, obstructing governmental administration in the second degree, resisting arrest, attempted asault in the third degree, menacing in the third degree and harassment in the second degree, according to the Kings County District Attorney’s office.

Dispute Ends in Robbery

On Aug. 23 at 3 p.m., a 22-year-old man was fighting with his acquaintance on Waverly Avenue near Lafayette Avenue when his diamond cross pendant – which he said is worth $5,000 – fell to the ground, cops said. His friend picked it up and fled, according to police. Police searched the area but could not find the thief.

Stolen Off the Street

A 33-year-old man told police that he placed his laptop on the ground on Lafayette Avenue near South Portland Avenue on Aug. 20 at about midnight and turned away to talk to his friends. When he checked back about 20 minutes later, the laptop was gone, cops said. A video camera at the nearby Mo’s Bar may be able to provide footage of the theft, according to police.

Incidents at Brooklyn Technical High School

-Someone sneaked into Brooklyn Technical High School through the basement security gate, broke the window of a school office and clipped the locks on five lockers between Aug. 19 at 9 p.m. and Aug. 20 at 5 p.m., police said. It wasn’t clear at the time of the report if anything was stolen, because no school staff members were available to speak with police. A camera in the corner of the basement hallway may have footage of the incident, cops said.

-Someone stole an HP ProBook and two iPads from the dean’s office at Brooklyn Technical High School on Aug. 22 between 4:30 and 4:45 a.m., police said. The burglar entered through the basement security gate, according to police. School staff will provide the serial numbers for the iPads.

Theft from Hospital

Pierre Okolo, 35, was arrested after he allegedly took a credit card from a restricted area of the Brooklyn Hospital Center on Aug. 20 at 11 a.m., police said. It is not clear whether Okolo was a patient or employee at the hospital.

Okolo was charged with burglary in the third degree, grand larceny in the fourth degree, criminal possession of stolen property in the fourth and fifth degrees, petit larceny, criminal trespass in the third degree and trespass, according to the Kings County District Attorney’s office.

Thefts from Stores

-A thief stole a wallet containing $225 in cash, a Chase credit and debit card and a passport card from the Ten Grand Avenue antique shop near Flushing Avenue on Aug. 21 around 2:30 p.m., police said.

-Berkeley Adams, 30, allegedly attempted to steal a memory card, a photo and receipt, an HTC battery and a viewfinder for a Leica camera from B & H Photo Warehouse in the Brooklyn Navy Yard on Aug. 19 at about 8 a.m. – but a store employee managed to take the items back before police arrived and arrested Adams.

Adams was charged with grand larceny in the fourth degree, criminal possession of stolen property in the fourth and fifth degrees and petit larceny, according to the Kings County District Attorney’s office.

Stolen Cars, Bicycles and Scooters

-A 39-year-old woman told police that she parked her 1996 Jeep Grand Cherokee on Park Avenue at Navy Street on Aug. 21 at 11 p.m. When she returned on Aug. 22 at 9 a.m., the Jeep was gone, cops said. Police searched the area but could not find the van.

-A 51-year-old man told police that he locked his bicycle on Saint James Place between Gates Avenue and Fulton Street on Aug. 24 at 4:30 a.m. When he returned at 3 p.m., the bike and a helmet were gone. The chain and lock were left behind, police said.

-A 36-year-old woman told police that she parked her 2009 Yamaha Zuma scooter on Carlton Avenue between Myrtle and Willoughby Avenues on Aug. 24 at 10 p.m. When she returned the next day at 6 a.m., the scooter was gone, cops said. The woman told police that the scooter, worth $3,000, was not padlocked, but she still has both sets of keys. Police searched the area but could not find the scooter. No records indicate that the scooter had been towed by the city marshal, cops said.

Thefts from Cars and Trucks

-On Aug. 19 between noon and 12:45 p.m., someone broke the window of a commercial truck parked on Ashland Place at Fulton Street and stole nut drivers, a wire cutter, a cripping tool and screwdriver, police said.

-A thief took a light meter, a cleaver, a tool bag, a light sensor and staple guns – worth a total of $1,094 – from a commercial truck parked on Hall Street at Myrtle Avenue on Aug. 18 between 12:30 and 1 p.m., cops said.

-A 33-year-old woman told police that someone broke the window of her car and took a Juicy Couture wallet and a backpack on Aug. 22 between midnight and 9:45 a.m. There is a security camera near the parking spot, on Fulton Street between Saint James Place and Grand Avenue, but cops said they had not yet been able to retrieve footage.

-A woman told police that she parked her car on Ashland Place near Long Island University Brooklyn’s Wellness, Recreation and Athletic Center on Aug. 24 at 1 p.m. When she returned at 5:15 p.m., her Dell laptop, worth $2,000, was missing from inside. None of the car’s windows or locks were broken, police said.

Stolen Mop

On Aug. 22 at 1:30 a.m., a thief allegedly whacked the owner of Saba Deli and Grocery on Myrtle Avenue with a mop, when the owner attempted to stop him from stealing the mop. The owner suffered a minor cut on his right arm, cops said. Cameras inside the store may have footage of the theft and attack, according to police.

Attempted Robbery

A man told police on Aug. 19 that more than five months ago, two men threatened him and attempted to take his belongings on Willoughby Avenue near Hall Street, but were unsuccessful. It is unclear what belongings the men attempted to steal or why the man took so long to report the March 5 incident.

Unauthorized Account Usage

-The business manager for Community Partnership Charter School on Emerson Place told police that someone withdrew $2,460 from the school’s account using fraudulent checks. He found out about the fraud when he looked at a bank statement and noticed there were three checks that did not follow the appropriate check sequence, police said.

-An 18-year-old Lefferts Place resident told police that someone used her lost Bank of America debit card without permission between Aug. 14 and 17. It is not clear how much was charged to her card.