In an effort to reduce the number of strong-armed robberies along the Ridgewood/Bushwick border, the 104th Precinct announced it would be working with the 83rd Precinct in Bushwick to crack down on this issue during the precinct’s Jan. 3 Community Council meeting.
According to Deputy Inspector Deputy Inspector Kevin J. Coleman, the commanding officer of the 104th Precinct, many of these robberies have happened along the Queens/Brooklyn border from Fairfax Avenue into Bushwick, all the way down to Heart Avenue and Putnam Avenue.
“We want to stop these robberies. We want to arrest everyone involved in them,” Coleman said. “Our primary mission, of course, is to keep the neighborhood safe to keep people safe. But we also want people to feel safe as well, you know, going about their daily lives, getting things, doing their errands and getting things done,” Coleman said.
During the Jan. 3 meeting, Coleman said that 13 robberies have occurred in the area since the end of November, all during the early hours from midnight to 5 a.m. He also said that many of the incidents involved people coming out of bars.
“People coming out of the bars are kind of being targeted,” Coleman said. “There’s two or three guys that approach someone from behind who either punch them or put them in a headlock and then take their wallet or phone or belongings.”
He also noted that bars in the area were informed of that several residents were being robbed in the area.
“We’ve been trying to inform bars and businesses,” Coleman said. “Also, if we do see intoxicated individuals out in the street, we are rendering aid for them, you know, calling them calling an ambulance for them, and so on.”
We would like to thank everyone who came out to our @104PCC Community Council Meeting last night. Also congratulations to our Cops of the Month. pic.twitter.com/UAdBE4h4sO
— NYPD 104th Precinct (@NYPD104Pct) January 4, 2023
According to Coleman, the 104th Precinct’s partnership with the 83rd Precinct comes as both precincts are battling similar issues.
“We’re working closely with the 8-3 as well,” Coleman states. “It’s because they have this similar incident going on. So we believe it’s the same people.”
Coleman said there is currently only one person of interest in connection with the robberies and there are no other leads due to a lack of video evidence. However, Coleman indicated that additional cameras were being installed in an effort to identify more suspects.
“For most of the incidents we didn’t have any video, so we have no leads to go on. That has changed,” Coleman said.
Coleman and the rest of the 104th Precinct hope the partnership with the 83rd Precinct will lead to finding and arresting the individuals involved in the robbery spree.
“I’m hoping as soon as possible that we’re going to make an arrest and stop these robberies from occurring,” Coleman said.
