Prolific Thief Caught and Arrested After Exhaustive Operation By Crown Heights Shomrim
by CrownHeights.info
After weeks of painstaking and frustrating work by Shomrim, one of Crown Heights’s most elusive thieves finally faces his crimes.
The yet-unnamed thief, who had terrorized the community by stealing any item he could carry off, was finally caught by Shomrim Wednesday, in a story straight out of a spy novel.
This Thief Was Different from all other Thieves
While thieves are nothing new in Crown Heights, nearly all of them are simply criminals of opportunity. An unlocked car, a package left unattended on a porch, these thieves are rarely practiced in crime, doing little to hide their identity and even less to get away once caught. This guy was different.
Even in the earliest home surveillance footage of his thefts, the man termed the CitiBike thief, always wore a mask, cap, or hoodie, keeping the police and Shomrim guessing as to his nationality and identity. Always very aware, he would circling back, round blocks, and check his surroundings multiple times on his bike and on foot to ensure he was not being observed.
But the biggest difference yet was his knowledge of the area.
Alleyways, building exits, and parks, this man used every nook and cranny to disappear, leading Shomrim and the police on more than one chase, only to disappear into a building or hop over a locked fence.
Reports of this man’s thefts began more than two weeks ago when Shomrim began identifying a string of daring thefts and burglaries that were unlike your normal crime of opportunity.
In one of the earlier cases, the man stole a couple of boxes by climbing the outside of a six-foot fence set around a raised balcony, a daring theft that stood out like a sore thumb. Within days it became apparent that nothing was off-limits for this guy. Day or night, he stole anything that was not bolted down, from small packages left on porches to an entire grill sitting behind a closed gate and down an alley.
Something about this guy was different.
The Search and Chase
With the volunteers of Shomrim still warm from a successful operation that caught a serial female package thief, and with more reports of this new thief flowing in every day, Shomrim began actively searching for the man, chasing down every lead and scouring the streets of Crown Heights.
In one of their early leads, the thief was caught in Crown Heights stealing packages from a porch, but managed to get away after dropping multiple stolen packages along with a duffel bag. The police were called, and they requested help from Shomrim to track down the elusive thief.
Over a dozen Shomrim volunteers began combing the streets of Crown Heights, and in just a few minutes, the thief was spotted just a few blocks away.
Down streets, through alleyways, and into a park, the police and Shomrim chased the thief without success. He managed to get away and hide, only to be found and chased again minutes later. In the end, he finally managed to disappear completely, leaving very frustrated officers and even more determined Shomrim volunteers.
For two weeks, the volunteers of Shomrim followed the thief through video footage and careful surveillance, tracking him to his lair at 1622 President Street and attempting to catch him in the act.
This thief was very different though, easily able to identify Shomrim vehicles and recognize when he was being followed. So Shomrim stepped up their game, using multiple volunteers at once on electric scooters and bikes to follow and keep him unaware that he was being tailed. In the end, it worked.
Chased Down and Caught
On Wednesday, June 29th, at 5:10pm, an alert Shomrim volunteer was staking out 1622 President Street when he spotted the thief outside the building. Calling for backup, the volunteer tailed him as he moved in the area of Utica Ave before the slick thief realized was being followed.
As soon as he realized, the thief took off running, disappearing into a nearby store. But this time, Shomrim was prepared. Volunteers flooded the area, going store to store until the thief was caught nearby.
It was a rowdy scene, police, large crowd, and all.
After the arrest, many sighed a great sigh of relief as the thief was taken to the 71st Precinct to face his crimes.
The Follow Up
Having ensured that the thief was in cuffs, Shomrim set to work making sure that he would face a full rap sheet. Putting victims in contact with police, combing through video footage, and attempting to gather any not yet reported cases, the volunteers worked deep into the night.
In the end, one of the most elusive thieves in Crown Heights faces multiple charges stemming from his thefts and other crimes, including felonies.
“This serial thief has been plaguing our community stealing everything and anything he can get his hands on,” Crown Heights Shomrim wrote on Twitter. “He is also super elusive, but his luck ran out as our Volunteers apprehended him working in #collaboration with @NYPD71Pct.”
