Cops hunt Bx. mugger of elderly
Cops are asking the public’s help tracking down a knife-wielding crook who has assaulted and mugged at least eight elderly men in the Bronx, getting away with $3,000 cash from one victim.
The suspect typically slips behind victims inside their apartment buildings and snatches their cash, sometimes menacing them with a knife or roughing them up.
The robber first struck about 5:30 p.m. May 3 when he held a knife to the throat of a 79-year-old man arriving home near Holland and Brady Aves. He snatched $3,000 in cash from the man’s pockets and took off.
About 9 p.m. Sept. 8 he accosted a 76-year-old man on the stairs of the victim’s building on Webb Ave. and W. 197th St. in Kingsbridge Heights and bashed his head against a wall, then snatched $40 in cash, cops said.
The victim suffered a head injury but declined medical attention.
Four days later, the crook struck again, attacking a 78-year-old man near Barker Ave. and Thwaites Place in Allerton about 7:40 p.m. He shoved the victim to the ground and stole $20. The victims suffered cuts on his arms.
About 3 p.m. Sept. 17, he robbed a 72-year-old man at knifepoint of his personal belongings near Grand Ave. and W. 190th St. in Fordham Manor. Just hours later, he menaced a 48-year-old man on E. 148th St. near St. Anns Ave. with a knife in Mott Haven, pushed him to the ground and stole $35 in cash about 9:20 p.m., police said.
On Sept. 20, he stole $12 in cash from a 65-year-old man getting off an elevator in a building on Magenta St. near White Plains Road in Gun Hill. The victim suffered a knee injury.
About 5:10 p.m. on Sept. 22, he stole a cell phone and wallet with $150 inside from a 90-yearold man inside the victim’s building near Cruger Ave. and Pelham Parkway South. Cops released video showing the crook pickpocketing the victim from behind.
Just after 5 p.m. on Sept. 28, he knocked down an 81-year-old man in a building on Holland Ave. near Pelham Parkway in Pelham, rifled through his pockets and took off with about $400 in cash. The victim suffered an injury to his right hand.
Police released video and photos of the suspect on Sunday and asked for the public’s help identifying him.
Anyone with information can call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at (800) 577-TIPS.
All calls will be confidential. kept