Crime Report: Random Assaults and Muggings

By Melisa Stumpf

Only two people were arrested in the 88th Precinct two week, down from three the previous week, but two random assaults, along with 19 other felonies, were reported in the precinct.

A 22-year-old woman was walking at 1:40 p.m. between Cumberland Street and Park Avenue on Sept. 23 when a man ran at her, called her a prostitute and hit her in the face with a glass bottle, injuring her.

The woman said her attacker was wearing a multi-colored cap, mostly orange and blue.

Five days later, on Sept. 28, a 15-year-old boy was walking through Commodore Barry Park at 9 p.m. when a group of men suddenly began chasing him, he told police. One of the bandits hit the teenager on the right side of his head using a fake gun, police said. The boy had no visible injuries, and police found the imitation pistol near where the attack happened. Neither attacker has been arrested.

Successful Chase

-A 31-year-old woman chased down a mugger who had stolen her iPhone, cops said. A witness caught the thief, who had come up behind the victim on DeKalb Avenue and Washington Park at 12:45 p.m. on Sept. 27, police said. The witness then recovered the phone from the ground next to the robber.

Brandon Craddock, 19, was arrested and charged with grand larceny in the fourth degree, petit larceny and criminal possession on fifth degree, according to the Kings County District Attorney’s office.

Other Cell Phone Thefts

-A robber allegedly grabbed a 15-year-old boy’s iPhone at 4:45 p.m. on Sept. 25 at the intersection of Myrtle and Vanderbilt Avenues. The robber approached the boy and asked him what kind of cell phone plan he had. When the boy hesitated, the robber told him, “If you don’t walk down, my friend is going to shoot you!” The victim took the cell phone out of his pocket, police said, and the robber snatched it and ran south on Vanderbilt Avenue toward Willoughby Avenue.

-A thief snatched a 28-year-old woman’s Samsung Galaxy from her right hand on Sept. 26 at 12:15 a.m. near Pratt Institute, she told police. The woman struggled with the robber, but he fled toward DeKalb Avenue.

-A robber forced open a door of an elevator in the Walt Whitman Houses, and pointing his finger like a mock gun, cornered a 19-year-old man inside and grabbed his iPhone at about 11:45 a.m. on Sept. 26.  The victim tried to locate the stolen phone with tracking software, to no avail.

-A 31-year-old man was walking north on Washington Park at about 2:45 p.m. on Sept. 24 when two men approached him and demanded to use the cellphone he was carrying. When the man refused and tried to pocket the phone, the robbers snatched it from him and ran, police reported. Tracking software failed to locate the phone.

Wallet Stolen

A mugger snatched a black Gucci wallet bearing the initials “MF” from 33-year-old woman’s hand on Sept. 25 at 11 a.m. at Lafayette Avenue and Ashland Place. The thief ran east on Lafayette Avenue, cops said. The woman’s learner’s permit and bank cards were inside the wallet, she told police.

Car Break-ins

-A 22-year-old woman parked her car on Vanderbilt Avenue near Willoughby Avenue to go to school on Sept. 24 at 4:30 p.m. and returned to find that her Louis Vuitton bag, Gucci perfume, makeup and credit cards had been stolen. She told police she had left the driver’s-side front window open.

-A 44-year-old man returned to a parking lot on Fulton Street at Ashland Place on Sept. 29 to find the front window of his car shattered and a portable Honda electric generator missing, police reported.

-A thief took a $70 cellphone, a New York driver’s license and vehicle registration and a Chase debit card from a 44-year-old woman’s car that was parked at the corner of DeKalb Avenue and Ashland Place, police said. The woman discovered that the items were missing on the morning of Sept. 23, police said. No unauthorized transactions were made on the card.

House Ransacked

On the night of Sept. 25, burglars made off with $1,670 worth of construction equipment from a house under construction near the intersection of Putnam and Classon Avenues. The house was secured with plywood and a lock that was easily clipped, police said. The owner, a 42-year-old man, told police that a sliding compound Miter saw, a table saw, an air compressor, a grinder, and a nail gun were stolen.

Missing Laptop

A 30-year-old woman reported a Macbook Pro missing from her apartment on Washington Avenue near Fulton Street on Sept 25. There were no signs of break-ins, and the victim told police that her building’s super and one of her neighbors have keys to her apartment.

He Simply Wanted Beer

Jair Gonzaga, 33, was arrested on Sept. 28 after he broke into Der Schwarze Kolner – the popular beer garden on Fulton Street between South Oxford Street and South Portland Avenue – at 5:30 a.m., and took two rolls of quarters, police said. Through a translator, he told police in Spanish that he simply wanted a beer. Gonzaga was seen cutting the cords of video surveillance, police said.

Gonzaga was charged with burglary in the third degree, criminal mischief in the fourth degree, petit larceny, criminal possession in the fifth degree, criminal trespass in the third degree, and trespass, according to the Kings County District Attorney’s office.

Apartment Break-in

Traveler’s checks, a pair of earrings and an Apple computer – with a total value of $5,400 – were stolen from an apartment on Ashland Place, police said. The resident, a 62-year-old, told police that the theft happened between April 15 through May 25, when a moving company had access to her apartment.

Stolen Bikes

-A 30-year-old man told police that someone stole his bike from its parking spot on Lafayette Avenue at Vanderbilt Avenue. The thief used bolt cutters to break the lock the man used to attach the bike to a lamp post, according to police. The theft happened at 2:30 p.m. on Sept. 21, cops said.

-Someone stole a KHS Montana Community Bike that had been latched to a fence with a cable lock on St. James Place on Sept. 26. The 31-year-old owner discovered the theft after he returned from a 4:45 p.m. meeting, police said.

Mystery Spending

Between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. on Sept 15, someone made two ATM withdrawals from a 19-year-old man’s account, removing $1,080, cops said. The man was in possession of his card the entire time, according to police.

Car Thefts

-A 2000 Dodge Caravan was stolen between 10 p.m. on Sept. 21 and noon on Sept. 22, police reported. The 41-year-old owner discovered the theft when he returned to his car, parked on Cumberland Street at Fulton Street.

-A 1996 Honda Civic that was parked at Clinton Avenue near Willoughby Avenue on Sept. 28 2:45 p.m. was stolen, the 35-year-old owner told police. The owner said she discovered her car was missing a day later.

Stolen Items from Storage

Various types of copper were taken from a storage area in the Ingersoll Houses between Sept. 23 and Sept. 27, police said. Many people have access to the storage area, according to cops.

The items’ value is estimated to be more than $2,000. There was no sign of forced entry, police said.