Local Petty Thieves Grab Tip Jar From Lucky Lotus Yoga, Says Owner

A local yoga studio and cafe was allegedly robbed of about $10 in tips plus several bottles of essential oils by teen thieves this morning, said store owner Ava Gerber, who runs Lucky Lotus Yoga Studio and Cafe at 334 Myrtle Avenue.

The incident occurred at around 11am on Tuesday, October 13, shortly after “two teens came in and were sort of goofing around, trying to hit on my employee,” said Gerber. “I asked them to leave and was trying to be patient. Finally, one of them bought a $2 coffee, but they were still looking around and then they grabbed the tip jar and some essential oils, ran across the street into the park and then cut across into the [housing] projects.”

“We feel really fortunate that nothing of huge importance got taken because we realized what was going on. but maybe someone else won’t be so fortunate,” she added.

The incident was reported to local police with the 88th Precinct, but Gerber said she’s not sure how useful it will be since there was no video surveillance and  “they said they can’t look for them once they go into the buildings].”

Asked if she feels any less safe after the incident, Gerber noted that “I’ve been in business in Fort Greene for 13 years and only one other time have we had something happen, but it was a guy going around to all yoga studios.”

But having “people hanging around on [outdoor] benches drinking and smoking is a deterrent from doing business on Myrtle Avenue, and it’s especially a bummer if you call the police and they just do the paperwork.”

What do you think? Have you had any run-ins with petit larceny recently?