By Tom Tracy By Stephen Witt
Cops are on the look out for a trio of gun-toting thieves preying upon shop-owners along Avenue N. Police confirmed that within the last month, there have been just over a half-dozen gunpoint robberies in stores along the Mill Basin shopping strip. The most recent robbery took place inside a news and grocery stand near the corner of Utica Avenue and Avenue N at 1:45 a.m. on February 7. According to officials, the suspects, two males and a female stormed into the store wearing ski masks, held up the workers at gunpoint and robbed the place of its receipts. Other area stores robbed included the Carvel on Avenue N as well as a bagel store at the corner of Avenue N and Schenectady Avenue, where over $1000 in receipts were taken. Sources said that all of the robberies have taken place along Avenue N between Utica and Flatbush avenues. In light of the recent robberies, cops have placed a stationary foot patrol in the heart of the danger zone. One police source said he didn’t know exactly how many robberies have been committed along Avenue N since the middle of January. “It has to be seven at least,” the source said. News of the spate of robberies has alarmed area merchants, many of whom have already taken precautions to protect their businesses. “Everyone’s worried about it,” said one resident, who knew something was wrong when he kept seeing a cop at a stationary post outside the Flatlands Volunteer Ambulance Corps at the corner of Avenue N and Schenectady avenue last week. “I know two stores that are so worried that they installed buzzers to they can select who can come in and who doesn’t. Cops are asking anyone with information regarding this robbery pattern to come forward. Calls can be made to the 63rd Precinct at (718) 258-4411. All calls will be kept confidential.
