UPDATED Nov. 7, 4:30 p.m.
Cops are looking for a thief who beat up and robbed a 37-year-old man inside his Rego Park apartment last month.
Law enforcement sources said the trouble occurred at 9:40 a.m. on Oct. 31 in the vicinity of 63rd Drive and 99th Street.
According to sources familiar with the investigation, the victim made contact with the male suspect through the Grindr dating app and arranged to meet him at the apartment that morning. When the perpetrator arrived at the location, the victim later told police, he appeared to be high.
Things turned violent, authorities said, when the victim asked the other man to leave. The suspect became irate, then grabbed a MacBook laptop off a table and proceeded to punch the victim numerous times in the chest. Police noted that the bandit told the victim that he had a gun.
Seconds later, the perpetrator fled the scene on foot in an unknown direction. The incident was later reported to the 112th Precinct.
On Monday, the NYPD released an image of a potential suspect, but the following day indicated that the individual is no longer being pursued as part of the ongoing investigation.
Anyone with information regarding the incident is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (for Spanish, dial 888-57-PISTA), visit their website or send a text message to 274637 (CRIMES), then enter TIP577. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
