Police from the 103rd Precinct in Jamaica are looking for a shoeless burglar who targeted two commercial businesses in St. Albans in less than a half hour last week.
The unidentified suspect allegedly broke into an industrial warehouse at 105-05 180th St. at around 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 23, using an unknown object to break the gated window. Once inside, the suspect removed two checks valued at $2,229 and fled the location, police said.
The suspect didn’t go very far, cops said. About 25 minutes later, the alleged burglar broke into another business around the corner. The man used a metal object to break the security gate at Hepco Heating & Plumbing, located at 180-08 Liberty Ave. Once inside, the perpetrator removed $10,000 in cash and blank business checks from a locked metal box, police said. He then fled the location on foot along Liberty Avenue.
The NYPD released surveillance images of the suspect on Monday and described him as having a dark complexion, being approximately 6-feet tall and having a slim build. He was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, camouflage-colored pants and dark socks.
Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website, on Twitter @NYPDTips.
Through Jan. 28, the 103rd Precinct has reported 10 burglaries so far this year, eight fewer than the 18 reported at the same point in 2023, a decline of 44.4%, according to the most recent CompStat report.
