A 68-year-old woman was critically injured after she was beaten and robbed as she was going to church in Jamaica Hills on Sunday morning by a perpetrator who also allegedly stole her car.
Police from the 107th Precinct in Fresh Meadows reported that the woman was attacked while heading up the front stairs of St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church at 84-35 152nd St. at approximately 8:20 a.m. when a stranger approached her from behind and punched her in the face.
The blow caused the senior to lose her balance and fall down the stairs where she stuck her. The assailant proceeded to forcibly remove her purse containing $300 in cash, her cell phone, credit cards, and car keys, police said, adding that the suspect drove away from the crime scene in the victim’s 2006 Nissan Altima in an unknown direction.
EMS transported the woman to New York-Presbyterian Queens Hospital where she was listed in critical condition.
The NYPD released surveillance video of the suspect on Monday and described him as having a dark complexion, 18 to 25 years of age, 5’8” tall with a medium build. He was last seen wearing a red hooded sweatshirt under a black jacket, black pants, a black face mask, and black Air Jordan sneakers with red trim.
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 March 31, the 107th Precinct has reported 27 robberies so far in 2024, 5 fewer than the 32 reported at the same point last year, a decline of 15.6%, according to the most recent CompStat report. Assaults in the 107th are on the rise with 72 reported so far this year, 11 more than the 61 reported at the same point in 2023, an increase of 18%, according to CompStat.
