Police from the 109th Precinct in Flushing are looking for a half dozen thieves who targeted a Sunglass Hut located inside the Macy’s store on Main Street twice last month making off with more than $40,000 worth of merchandise.
On both occasions, first on Monday, Jan. 8 at around 7:15 p.m. and again at the same time on Saturday, Jan. 20, the suspects did not operate like a smash-and-grab crew that has become prevalent across the city in recent years. Instead, they worked in concert. The apparent ringleader stood with a duffel bag as his associates fanned out through the store snatching merchandise off the shelves and from display cases, according to law enforcement sources familiar with the investigation.
The first time they hit the shop they removed merchandise valued at $16,780 and the second time they took merchandise worth $23,958 before running out of the shop, which is located in the Macy’s store at 136-50 Main Street.
There were no injuries reported in either incident and the group did not damage store property like a smash-and-grab crew would. The NYPD released surveillance images of the suspects who are wanted in the grand larceny investigation. Most wore hooded winter jackets and face coverings to protect their identities.
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 at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, or on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
Through Jan. 11, the 109th Precinct has reported 165 grand larcenies so far in 2024, 3 fewer than the 168 reported at the same point last year, a decrease of 1.8%, according to the most recent CompStat report.
