ASTORIA — Police said two auxiliary police officers aided in making four arrests in an active robbery pattern in western Queens last week.
Authorities said four men — 19−year−old Luis Navarro of the Bronx, 19−year−old Jemal Hays of Brooklyn, 18−year−old Edward Edwards of Brooklyn and 19−year−old Jamaica resident Corey King — were arrested and charged in connection with a string of robberies that have targeted deliverymen and solitary pedestrians in Astoria over the past month.
Police said Auxiliary Police Officers Lisaura Mesa and Jose Velez were canvassing the area near 37th Avenue and 23rd Street on Jan. 21 when they saw two men who fit the description of those wanted in the robberies. Mesa and Velez called in police officers from the 114th Precinct for backup, who subsequently arrested Navarro and Hays.
Police said information obtained during the interrogation process also led to the arrest of Edwards and King Friday. Police said the four men allegedly carried out five violent robberies in the Astoria area from Jan. 12 to Jan. 20.
All four men were charged with second−degree robbery, police said.
