Updated Tuesday, May 19, 10:02 a.m.
Detectives are asking the public’s help in finding four people wanted in connection with a series of knife point robberies on the J line in Richmond Hill and Brooklyn this month.
The first caper occurred in Richmond Hill at 2:40 p.m. on May 8, when a 25-year-old woman was robbed by a knife-wielding male crook while riding a Jamaica Center-bound J train as it approached the 121st Street station.
Authorities said the suspect displayed a knife and forcibly removed the victim’s cash and MetroCard; he then exited the train at the 121st Street stop and was last seen fleeing toward the station’s mezzanine.
Two days later, four suspects robbed and assaulted an 18-year-old man on a Jamaica Center-bound J train as it approached the 111th Street station in Richmond Hill at about 1:50 a.m. on May 10, police said.
The crooks — three men and one woman — reportedly displayed a knife, then punched the victim about the left side of the face, causing swelling. Law enforcement sources said the bandits took the victim’s iPhone 6 and a shopping bag containing a jacket, a Gucci belt and Air Jordan sneakers.
The third incident occurred four minutes later at 1:54 a.m. on May 10 in Cypress Hills, when a male suspect assaulted and robbed a 47-year-old man of his iPhone on a Jamaica Center-bound J train approaching the Cleveland Street station.
Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website or can text their tips to CRIMES (274637), then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.
Editor’s note: A previous version identified five suspects wanted in connection with the pattern. The NYPD has since revised its information indicating that just four individuals are sought.
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