Two young men were robbed at gunpoint inside the Tangram Mall in Flushing last month and the two suspects remain at large.
Police from the 109th Precinct in Flushing reported that the 21-year-old victim and his friend, a 23-year-old man, entered the mall, located at 133-33 39th Ave., on the night of Sunday, Aug. 18, when they were approached by two men.
One pulled out a firearm and threatened the victims, and the robbers forcibly removed a tote bag containing approximately $40,000 in cash, police said.
The victims were double-crossed after they arranged to meet the two perpetrators to exchange the $40,000 in U.S. currency for Chinese currency, as they were preparing to go to China within the next six months, according to a law enforcement source familiar with the investigation.
The armed robbers ran out of the Tangram Mall in an unknown direction. There were no injuries as a result of the armed robbery, police said.
The NYPD released surveillance images of the suspects on Wednesday and described them as Asians in their 20s with black hair and black eyes. They wore all-black clothing.
A reward of up to $3,500 is offered for information leading to their arrest.
Anyone with information regarding this investigation 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 Sept. 22, the 109th Precinct has reported 234 robberies so far in 2024, four more than the 230 reported at the same point last year, an increase of 1.7%, according to the most recent CompStat report.
