Crime & Safety

This Week's Police Blotter

Here's a run-down of crime from within the confines of the 88th Precinct.

This week's blotter opens up with an extraordinary amount of incidents near Bruce Ratner's Atlantic Terminal Mall.

 • A thief swiped a woman’s purse while she shopped at the Burlington Coat Factory in the Atlantic mall on Dec. 30.

The victim told cops she had set her purse down on the ground in the department store on Atlantic Avenue at around 8:20 pm to check out some accessories. She realized her purse was missing five minutes later when she approached the cash register. After searching around the store she was able to find her purse in the house wares section. Unfortunately, the thief had stolen an assortment of credit cards from her bag.

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• A thief punched a man in the face numerous times before stealing his iPhone on Jan. 4.

The victim told cops he was on Flatbush Avenue in front of the mall at around 5 pm when he was beaten down for his fancy phone.

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• A beggar repeatedly swung at a passerby when he refused a request for alms on Jan. 6.

The victim said he was at the Atlantic-Pacific subway station at around midnight when the beggar flipped out. Cops arrested the 26-year-old man and charged him with harassment and disorderly conduct.

• It didn’t take long for trouble to rise at the brand new and always busy Best Buy at the Atlantic Terminal Mall.

Five thugs beat down a man shopping in the popular electronics store on Jan. 7. The victim told cops he had to have his jaw wired shut because he was beaten so brutally.

• A not-so-crafty employee at Target was busted depositing $7,500 onto gift cards without paying any cash on Jan. 8.

Cops said the 20-year-old worker had been caught on camera putting the cash into five gift cards in separate incidents on Dec. 26 and Jan. 4. Officer Eric Luk made the arrest.

• A bandit swiped a woman’s purse as she tended to her baby in front of the Victoria’s Secret at the Atlantic Terminal Mall on Jan. 8.

The victim told cops she was adjusting her baby’s shoes in front of the women’s clothing store on Flatbush Avenue when the thief must have grabbed her purse, which she had set down in the baby carriage.

She lost an assortment of credit cards, a green card and a driver’s license.

Roughed up

A brute beat down a man and stole his USB memory stick and keys on Jan. 6.

The victim told cops he was on St. Edwards Street in the Ingersoll Houses at around 8:30 pm when the thief approached him from behind, punched him in the left eye and stole his stuff.

Mayhem at School

A wild student threatened to punch a school police officer and then caused chaos throughout the Brooklyn School for Career Development on Jan. 4.

A school safety officer told cops that as the student was being escorted into the school on Clermont Avenue at around 10:30 a.m. he flipped out, making gestures at the officer with a closed fist. The student then stormed through the school, and other kids joined with him, creating an out-of-control situation. The 17-year-old was eventually apprehended and charged with assault.

Sideswipe

A man dared to confront a reckless driver who sideswiped his car on Jan. 6, and was punched in the face for his troubles.

The victim told cops he was pulling out of a parking space on Fulton Street between S. Elliot Place and S. Portland Avenue at around 5 p.m. when the driver grazed his car and kept cruising along. The victim then caught up to the driver and confronted him, but the rowdy wheelman punched the victim, breaking his jaw.

Car Caper

A thief stole an assortment of pricey camera gear from a car parked in a parking lot for on Jan. 5.

The victim told cops he had left his car in the lot at Ashland Place and Fulton Street at around 10:30 pm. When he returned the next morning the driver-side lock had been popped open, and he was missing a Panasonic camera, a zoom lens, a tripod and some memory cards all worth a whopping $36,500.

Cell swipe

A 13-year-old thief snatched a girl’s cellphone out of her hand on Jan. 4.

The victim told cops she was at Fort Greene Place and Lafayette Avenue at around 4:20 pm when the thief made her move. The next day, cops arrested the teenage troublemaker.

Car thief

A thief stole a 1998 Ford Explorer parked on Irving Place on Jan. 4.

The victim told cops he had parked his ride between Gates and Putnam avenues at around 8 a.m.

When he returned to it 10 hours later it was gone.


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