Cops are looking for a suspect who remains at large for his role in a recent knifepoint robbery in Flushing, during which the victim was robbed of his belongings and dignity.
According to police, at 8:26 p.m. on May 19, a 38-year-old man entered a room that he was renting at a an apartment house on Maple Street near College Point Boulevard and used the bathroom.
Once he exited the bathroom, he saw two individuals — one later identified as Jeffrey Cen, and the other still unknown — standing in the room with a knife.
Law enforcement sources said the unidentified suspect punched the victim in the face while Cen demanded the victim’s property. The suspects then forcibly removed the victim’s backpack, iPhone 6 and wallet, which contained his identification cars, credit cards and $30,000 in cash.
Finally, authorities noted, the bandits forced the victim to strip down to his underwear and fled the scene with his property and his clothing.
Officers from the 109th Precinct responded to the incident; the victim suffered a minor injury to his face and refused medical attention at the scene.
Based on information obtained during the ongoing investigation, police arrested Cen, a resident of 45th Avenue in Flushing, on June 6 and charged him with two counts of robbery. The unidentified suspect remains at large.
Police described the perpetrator as a 25-year-old black man with a dark complexion and standing 6 feet tall. He was last seen wearing a black cap, a black hooded sweatshirt, a denim jacket and jeans.
Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
