Cell phone owners beware

109th Precinct

Downtown Flushing, East Flushing, Queensboro Hill, College Point, Malba, Whitestone, Beechhurst and Bay Terrace

            Officers of the 109^th Precinct want you to know that there were seven or eight incidents in May of cell phones – Verizon BlackBerrys and Apple iPhones especially – being stolen.

            Most of the thefts, which ranged from early in the day to late in the evening, occurred on Parsons Boulevard – at 37^th, 38^th, 34^th and 35^th Avenues.

            Police sources say the perp(s) run up from behind and snatch the phone from the unsuspecting victim as he or she talks or texts.

            One description of the suspect in two of the incidents says he is a male Hispanic on a bike.

            In order to safeguard yourself:

            *Always be aware of your surroundings

            *Avoid texting when walking

            *Be cautious of thieves coming from behind you

            *Consider using hands-free technology

            *Install “Find my iPhone” app or other similar applications that can track the location of your phone if it is stolen.