Property crime statistics in the 109th Precinct have gone up this month, with the station receiving reports of cash stolen as a result of four ATM skimming devices found in August, according to authorities.
“What happens, is all of the people that had their credit card compromised now opened up their credit card bills and found thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars of charges,” Deputy Inspector Thomas J. Conforti t0ld residents during the 109th Precinct Community Council meeting in Flushing Wednesday.
Conforti said that more than 30 people have been affected by the scam so far, with amounts stolen ranging from around $200 to $2,000, and that this accounts for many of the grand larceny cases recorded this month.
The inspector also said that auto theft statistics have gone up, but particularly with respect to a certain make and model of vehicle.
Within the last two weeks, nine white Ford Econoline vans have been stolen from the downtown Flushing area. According to Conforti, that van is consistently the most popularly stolen vehicle in the precinct because many of them are around to deliver goods to local stores and also because they have been constructed in much the same manner since the mid-1990s, so parts from vehicles made in different years are effectively interchangeable.
