Locked in
A man who walked into a stationary store at 200 Varick St. at King St. at 3:10 p.m. Sat., Sept 11 pushed the woman who owns the shop and announced, “I have a gun,” police said. The suspect then tried to open the cash register by picking it up and smashing it down on the counter several times but the owner ran out, locked the suspect in the store and called police. Eric Mays, 44, was arrested and charged with attempted robbery. Neither the owner nor a customer, who was in the store during the incident, was injured.
Big man on bike
A Bronx man, 36, told police he was on the south side of Fulton St. between Gold and Cliff Sts. at 1:09 p.m. Sun., Sept. 12 when a man he described as being bald, 6’2” and weighing 350 lbs. rode past him from behind on a bicycle, punched him, snatched his cell phone and rode off.
Knifepoint on PATH
A Brooklyn woman, 24, told police she was on a PATH train pulling into the World Trade Center station at 4:45 a.m. Sat., Sept. 11 when a man asked her if she needed help, then pulled a knife and demanded, “Give me what you’ve got.” He took her bag with $60 cash and fled, police said.
Brooklyn Bridge jump
Police responded to a report that a woman jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge near the Manhattan side at 6:16 a.m. Sat., Sept. 11. Divers from the NYPD Harbor Unit recovered an unconscious unidentified woman. She was taken to New York Downtown Hospital where she was declared dead at 7:05 a.m. The victim’s name was not disclosed pending notification of kin.
Grabbed bag
A Staten Island woman, 27, was waiting with her sister, 29, for a friend on the southeast corner of Grand and Wooster Sts, at 2:20 a.m. Fri. Sept 10, when three men came up and grabbed her bag, police said. In the struggle, the bag opened and her cell phone and wallet fell out. The thieves picked them up and fled on foot. The victim’s sister gave chase but lost sight of them at Canal St. and Broadway, police said.
Soho pickpocket
A man, 29, was walking past a crowed corner at Mercer and Spring Sts. at 8:15 p.m. Fri., Sept. 10 when someone bumped him from behind, police said. The victim turned but the person who bumped him was gone and the victim’s Louis Vuitton wallet with $30 cash, credit cards and personal ID was gone too.
Office break-in
A burglar forced open the door of an office in the building at 20 Vesey St. sometime after 8:30 p.m. Thurs., Sept. 9, and forced open two doors inside the suite but nothing was stolen, police said.
Bags stolen
A woman visitor from Austin, Tex. who was watching television at Blue Crab, the restaurant at 185 Duane St. at 11 p.m. Thurs., Sept. 9 at 11:15 p.m., had hung her Gucci bag on the back of her chair and lost it to an unknown thief, police said. A Fashion Institute of Technology student, 18, put her bag on a bench while she was at Greenhouse, 150 Varick St., around 2:30 a.m. Fri., Sept, 10 and discovered it was gone when she was about to leave, police said. A woman visiting from Mexico had her bag stolen while she was at Starbucks on Varick St. between Spring and Vandam Sts. on Sunday morning Sept. 12.
Motorcycle theft
A New Jersey man who locked his motorcycle in front of 80 N. Moore St. in Independence Plaza on Thursday morning Sept. 10 before going to work, discovered it was stolen when he returned during his lunch break, police said.
Bad Checks
Police arrested Samtou Aekim, 31, on Fri. Sept. 10, in connection with a series of checks totaling more than $120,000 belonging to KVB Partners, 60 Broad St., that he wrote for himself while working as a bookkeeper for the firm. Aekim, of New Rochelle, wrote the checks between Dec. 31, 2009 and July 31, 2010 and depositing them in his own accounts, falsely stating they were for paying expenses for KVB Partners, according to a spokesperson for Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. He pleaded not guilty and was freed on $25,000 bail pending a November court appearance.
Worse Checks
Police are seeking a woman member of a counterfeit check ring that cashed a total of more than $160,000 of fake checks on various banks including J.P. Morgan Chase, 60 Wall St. Achanti Troupe walked into the branch at the Chase Wall St. headquarters on Aug. 31 of last year and cashed a $7,000 counterfeit check, police said. She was part of a ring, 12 of whose members have already been arrested, that has stolen more than $160,000, police said. Troupe is described as a black woman, 5’5” weighing about 125 lbs. whose last known residence was 582 Howard Ave., Brooklyn. Anyone with information should call Crime Stoppers, 800:577-TIPS (8477) or online at www. nypdcrimestoppers.com or texting 274637 (Crimes) and entering TIP577.
Prescription forged
Police arrested Lisa Harper, 47, shortly before 5 p.m. Fri., Sept. 10 after she bought medicine valued at $1,000 at a pharmacy at 19 Beekman St. with a forged prescription. Police did not say what the medicine was.
LES shop lift
Police arrested Tara Figueroa, 34, and charged her with shoplifting clothes from a store at 81 Christie St., between Grand and Hester Sts. at 1 p.m. Sat., Sept. 4. Figueroa was walking out without paying for five blouses and struck an employee with a hanger when he stopped her, police said.
— Albert Amateau
