Police from three Queens precincts are looking for a group of moped-riding robbers who targeted three other riders in three different neighborhoods within an hour during a mobile crime spree in one night in June.
Police say the group of riders struck first in the confines of the 110th Precinct in Elmhurst on Sunday, June 29, while he was among a group of other moped riders in the vicinity of 48th Avenue and 111th Street, in front of the New York Hall of Science at around 7:15 p.m. The group approached a 46-year-old man at the northeast corner of Flushing Meadows Corona Park and punched him multiple times in the body and forcibly removed his cell phone and moped before riding off in an unknown direction, police said. The victim sustained minor injuries and was treated on scene by EMS.
The perpetrators struck again about 45 minutes later in the 107th Precinct in Fresh Meadows when they rode up alongside a 25-year-old man riding a moped at Union Turnpike and Main Street in Kew Gardens Hills. Police say two of the suspects punched him in the back of the head and forcibly took his moped, before the gang rode off eastbound on Union Turnpike toward the Grand Central Parkway. EMS responded to the location and transported the victim to NYC Health + Hospitals/Queens, where he was listed in stable condition and treated for minor injuries, police said.
Police say the group struck one more time that night, nearly five miles east, at around 10:15 p.m. in the confines of the 111th Precinct in Bayside. They rode up alongside a 34-year-old man who parked his moped at Union Turnpike and Springfield Boulevard in Oakland Gardens, where they attempted to take his moped. The victim attempted to stop them, but one of the gang hopped on his vehicle and they rode off northbound on Springfield Boulevard toward Bayside Hills. The victim was not injured during the encounter.
The NYPD released a surveillance image of one of the suspects from the Kew Gardens Hills robbery. He has a dark complexion and was wearing a black head covering, white tank top, black shorts and white and black sneakers.
Anyone with information regarding this robbery spree is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 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 confidential.
Through July 20, the 111th Precinct has reported 16 robberies so far in 2025, 17 fewer than the 33 reported at the same point last year, a decline of 51.5%, according to the most recent CompStat report. Robberies are also down in the 107th Precinct with 60 reported so far this year, seven fewer than the 67 reported at the same point in 2024, a decrease of 10,4%, according to CompStat. Robberies are also down in the 110th Precinct with 218 reported so far in 2025, 70 fewer than the 288 reported at the same point last year, a decline of 24.3%, according to CompStat.
