GRAND LARCENY AUTO: Septuagenarian’s sedan stolen | When a 77-year-old man left his red 2003 Nissan Altima parked outside of his W. 25th St. residence on Fri., Mar. 4, and went inside to watch TV for a few hours, he had no reason to suspect anything out of the ordinary would happen to the sturdy, steadfast sedan. But at 10:40 p.m., upon returning to where the vehicle was parked, he discovered it was gone without a trace. A canvas was conducted to negative results, and no indicators of theft (such as broken glass) were found at the scene.
GRAND LARCENY: Gucci grabbed at Gilded Lily | One criminal was presented with a genuinely golden opportunity at the Gilded Lily (408 W. 15th St., btw. Ninth & 10th Aves.) on Sun., Mar. 6, when a preoccupied patron failed to keep a close eye on her purse. The victim, a 34-year-old woman, arrived at the club with her friends at around 1 a.m., and placed her purse under a table next to the DJ booth in the downstairs area of the club. She told police that she left the purse unattended throughout the night while “drinking with friends,” in order to use the bathroom and “avoid multiple bar fights.” At 3:30 a.m., upon returning to the place where she stashed her stuff, the $1,100 Gucci purse was gone — along with the victim’s $500 iPhone 6, $100 cash, and various ID and credit cards.
CRIMINAL POSSESSION OF A CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE: Dopey Driver | Lawbreakers (the smart ones, at least) do all they can to lay low and avoid trouble — but one dangerous driver did quite a lot to draw attention to himself on Fri., Mar. 4. At around 2:45 a.m., the conspicuous criminal made an unsafe U-turn across a set of double yellow lines, attracting the attention of an observant officer, who also noticed the vehicle had a broken brake light. When the officer stopped the vehicle on the 300 block of W. 14th St., he discovered that the 27-year-old Queens resident had a suspended license, an outstanding warrant, and was in possession of “alleged cocaine.” Unsurprisingly, the individual was promptly arrested.
GRAND LARCENY: Scammer’s staggering shopping spree | A thief at PH-D Lounge (355 W. 16th St., btw. Eighth & Ninth Aves.) didn’t need doctorate-level intellect to execute an effective criminal plan. At about midnight on Sun., Mar. 6, a 23-year-old woman placed her purse down next to her at the rooftop lounge of the Dream Hotel, and later (at about 2 a.m.) noticed that someone had taken the $450 Rag & Bone wallet from her purse, along with its contents — which included a number of gift cards valued at $350, and $100 cash. To further compound problems, within hours, the thief had racked up charges in excess of $26,625 on her credit cards.
GRAND LARCENY: Brit in a bind, with handbag held hostage | While most would revel in the chance to go the Good Samaritan route, one couple of crooks rejected the opportunity by demanding a hefty ransom from an unfortunate tourist. The victim, a woman visiting from London, told police she lost her $200 bag while riding on the subway on Sun., Mar. 6. Soon thereafter, she received an email from a party claiming to have found her bag, whose contents included her passport and a $1,400 MacBook Air. The email went on to request $600 in exchange for the property. Meeting at the northwest corner of Eighth Ave. and W. 14th St. at around 8:30 p.m., the woman provided her cash for the bag — while an officer on hand bore witness to the troubling transaction, and arrested the 28-year-old man and 29-year-old woman responsible for the exchange.
—SEAN EGAN
THE 10th PRECINCT: Located at 230 W. 20th St. (btw. Seventh & Eighth Aves.). Commander: Deputy Inspector Michele Irizarry. Main number: 212-741-8211. Community Affairs: 212-741-8226. Crime Prevention: 212-741-8226. Domestic Violence: 212-741-8216. Youth Officer: 212-741-8211. Auxiliary Coordinator: 212-924-3377. Detective Squad: 212-741-8245. The Community Council meets on the last Wed. of the month, 7 p.m., at the 10th Precinct or other locations to be announced. The next meeting is Mar. 30.
THE 13th PRECINCT: Located at 230 E. 21st St. (btw. Second & Third Aves.). Deputy Inspector: David Ehrenberg. Call 212-477-7411. Community Affairs: 212-477-7427. Crime Prevention: 212-477-7427. Domestic Violence: 212-477-3863. Youth Officer: 212-477-7411. Auxiliary Coordinator: 212-477-4380. Detective Squad: 212-477-7444. The Community Council meets on the third Tues. of the month, 6:30 p.m., at the 13th Precinct. The next meeting is Mar. 15.
CASH FOR GUNS | $100 cash will be given (no questions asked) for each handgun, assault weapon or sawed-off shotgun, up to a maximum payment of $300. Guns are accepted at any Police Precinct, PSA or Transit District.
