By Rich Bockmann
Police said they arrested three men in the dark, early morning hours of Friday who are accused of breaking into a Broadway home that was filled with 20 people and being used as an illegal gambling location.
Austin Scott, 29, and Jason Scott, 26, both of 46-30 204th St. in Auburndale, and Christopher Hart, 27, from 113-14 209th St. in Queens Village, were arrested inside the home, at 33-57 164th St., and each was charged with robbery, burglary, assault and unlawful imprisonment, police said.
Police said they were still looking for two other suspects who fled the scene, but have not released a description.
In the light of day, after the night’s commotion had settled down, neighbors on the quiet, shaded street said they were awakened early in the morning by the sounds of helicopters flying overhead and dogs barking throughout their yards.
One woman said she saw police cars and an ambulance speed away. A “for sale” sign sits outside the house, but all who were asked said they were unaware of who, if anyone, lived inside the house.
Police said they responded to a 911 call of a home invasion around 2 a.m. When they got there, three of the victims inside had been pistol-whipped and one had been slashed, the NYPD said. All three were taken to New York Hospital in Flushing with non-life-threatening injuries, according to police.
On Friday afternoon, when the home was still taped off by police, one woman driving by said one of her tenants had spoken to her the night before about a suspicious black Chevrolet Suburban filled with several men driving suspiciously through the neighborhood.
“I didn’t call [the police]. Unfortunately, you want to call the police, but you think that if you call with such little information, they won’t come out,” she said.
Rhea O’Gorman, president of the Station Road Civic Association, said the Broadway home was not technically in her neighborhood, but she had never heard of any illegal gambling activity going on in the area.
“I assume the people who do that don’t get caught too often,” she said.
Reach reporter Rich Bockmann by e-mail at rbockmann@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4574.
