Help Themselves To Victims’ Property
The crooks duping Queens drivers by helping them fix flat tires only to steal from the unsuspecting motorists have spread their operation into Brooklyn and Manhattan.
The NYPD has released four additional incident reports in a string of 16 grand larcenies that began Aug. 9, 2012.
The three unidentified suspects have a set scam. They target individuals at banks and ATMs and remove air from the victims’ tires. They approach the victims, offering to help change the flat, but when the victims aren’t looking, one of the suspects removes valuables from the car.
According to police reports, the crooks have incorporated props in more recent incidents.
In two of the latest reports, the suspects wore orange construction vests. In three of the latest incidents, they produced tire patches.
The incidents are as follows:
On Feb. 22, at approximately 3 p.m., a victim pulled her car over near East 2nd Street andAvenue T in the Brooklyn’s Gravesend neighborhood to check a noise coming from her tire. One of the suspects approached her wearing an orange construction vest and holding a white bucket, police noted. He stated that he had a tire patch and offered to assist her. While he helped the victim, a second suspect entered the victim’s car and removed cash.
On Mar. 11, at approximately 10:10 a.m., a victim was sitting in her car at First Avenue and East 82nd Street in Manhattan. The suspect approached her and said one of her tires was flat. The suspect offered a tire patch and instructed her to hold it against the tire. After the suspect walked away, the victim realized that her handbag had been removed from the vehicle, according to police.
– On Mar. 23, at approximately 12:40 p.m., a victim was parking her car near 101st Avenue and 121 Street in Richmond Hill. She was approached by a man wearing a construction vest who told her that the air in her rear tire was low. He offered to help, and while he distracted the victim, another suspect removed the victim’s purse from her vehicle, according to an incident report.
– On Mar. 27, at approximately 12:35 p.m., a victim parked his car near Withers Street and Union Avenue in Williamsburg and was approached by a suspect who told him his jacket was dirty. The victim removed his jacket and placed it in the vehicle before driving a short distance. After parking, a second suspect approached the victim and told him the air in his rear tire was low. The suspect produced a tire patch and offered to help change the tire or fix the flat. When the victim bent down to inspect the tire, the first suspect entered the car and removed cash from the victim’s jacket, a police report stated.
The NYPD is asking for the public’s assistance in locating and apprehending three suspects.
Anyone with any information regarding the larcenies or the suspects’ whereabouts that could prove helpful is asked to contact Crime Stoppers by phone at 1-800-577-TIPS, by text message to 274637 (enter information, then the code “TIP577”), or online at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com.
All calls and messages will be kept confidential.
