E. Ninth St. holdups
Manhattan South Robbery Unit detectives have been interviewing E. Ninth St. merchants about a suspect who may have been involved in a series of more than 15 robberies between Grand St. and E. and W. 14th Sts.
Pam Pier, who owns Dinosaur Hill, a toy store at 306 E. Ninth St. near Second Ave., was the victim of one of the robberies on Sat., Oct. 6, when a man walked in just before closing time, kicked the door shut, pulled a bandana around his neck up over his nose and then pulled a black handgun and announced a holdup.
Described as about 5 feet, 7 inches tall and speaking with “something like an English accent,” the robber ordered Pier and her assistant to put all the money in a bag. “No coins,” he ordered, saying “I’m sorry” several times and then commanded them to lie on the floor behind the counter and to stay there until he left the store.
“He may have been East Indian or Middle Eastern, and told us to tell police that he didn’t want to hurt us,” said Pier, adding, “He got away with all the cash receipts from a busy Saturday.”
A robber with a similar description is wanted in two gunpoint robberies of Flower Power Roots and Herbs, 406 E. Ninth St. near First Ave., one in mid-September and the other in mid-October, according to neighbors.
Pier said detectives said the other robberies all took place between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. and all the ground-floor shops did not extend very far back from the front.
Another gunpoint holdup, but not related to the store holdups, occurred at 7:44 p.m. Mon., Nov. 5, when a man walked into the Kinney Parking garage at 220 E. Ninth St., pulled a gun on the attendant in the booth and fled with $1,000. He was described only as a black man wearing a hooded jacket, police said.
After a daylight robbery at Ibiza Kids, 42 University Pl. at E. Ninth St., at 1 p.m. Sat., Oct. 27, a suspect, William Farkas, 36, was charged with robbery, burglary and possession of stolen property. Police said Farkas confronted an employee, said, “I don’t want to alarm you but I’m going to rob you,” grabbed money from the register and fled. The employee gave chase and two officers on the scene made the arrest.
Floral larceny
A group of young men who entered Elizabeth Ryan Floral Designs, 411 E. Ninth St., on Sat., Oct. 6, distracted the owner and took her wallet from her bag, police and the owner said.
“I knew something was wrong because they barged into the back of the store where no one goes and began asking a lot of useless questions,” said Ryan. “They finally left and I discovered a half-hour later that my wallet was gone, and I cancelled my credit cards.”
That afternoon, she received a call from American Express about charges being rung up at Paragon Sports and called police, who arrested a suspect at the store on Broadway at 18th St.
Steals doughnut dough
A man walked into the Dunkin’ Donuts at 140 Delancey St. between Norfolk and Suffolk Sts. at about 3 a.m. Mon., Nov. 5, pulled a gun on the attendant, announced a robbery and fled with about $800, police said. The robber, described only as a Hispanic man about 25 years old, 5 feet, 8 inches tall and weighing about 170 pounds, was wearing a green hooded sweatshirt and a blue and yellow baseball cap. He was last seen running east on Delancey St.
Saws St. Vincent’s cables
A St. Vincent’s Hospital security guard spotted a man with a hacksaw cutting the cables of a backup generator in a trailer parked at the curb in front of the entrance on W. 12th St. east of Seventh Ave. at about 2:15 a.m. Sun., Oct. 28. The man tucked the hacksaw under his jacket when the guard confronted him, ran to a van parked nearby and sped away. Police traced the van and arrested Jerry Burger, 37, of the Bronx, for burglary.
False report
A 19-year-old man who told police that he had been shot in the foot by a gunman driving by in a black Honda at Avenue D and E. Fourth St. at 3 a.m. Sun., Oct. 28, changed his story two days later. Kelvin Romero admitted he was drunk at the time and accidentally shot himself in the foot when he took his gun from his waistband. He was charged with making a false report, and could face possible charges of illegal gun possession, punishable by three years in prison.
Seek shooting suspect
Police were still seeking the three suspects in the robbery and fatal shooting at a Flatiron area poker game on Friday night Nov. 2. Frank Desena, 47, a New Jersey resident and mathematics teacher at Stevens Institute, was killed when one of the robbers bent down to pick up a sawed-off shotgun that he had dropped and accidentally discharged a handgun. The shot hit Desena, one of the players at the floating poker game at 251 Fifth Ave., in the stomach. The game had been held at the address near 28th St. for only a week or so when the robbery-shooting occurred. The robbers made off with about $80,000 belonging to players at several tables, according to police.
Subway gropes
Transit police made two sexual misdemeanor arrests in separate incidents on two No. 5 trains at the Union Square station on Monday morning Nov. 5. Anthony Bullock, 39, was charged with coming up behind a woman passenger on a train at 8:30 a.m. and rubbing against her. Jeffery Taylor, 43, was charged with rubbing up against a 14-year-old girl passenger on a train at 8:50 p.m.
Boutique burglary
Police arrested Warren Shearin, 44, shortly after 5 a.m. Sat., Nov. 3, and charged him with burglary and possession of property stolen from the Ralph Lauren store in the Village on Bleecker St. between Perry and Charles Sts. during a break-in. Police said the suspect had stuffed clothing from the shelves into a garbage bag and fled, but the burglar alarm soon brought officers to the scene.
Charity pitch for police
Doris Diether, a Waverly Pl. resident, reported last week that she has been receiving telephone and fax requests for donations to benefit disabled police officers. The Sixth Precinct has reminded Villagers that the New York Police Department does not approve of such solicitations and that many of them are scams.
Car stolen
A guard at Westbeth left his car at the curb at West and Bethune Sts. with the keys in the ignition and went back to the guard post for a moment at 5:40 a.m. Mon., Oct. 29, when he saw the car moving off in reverse, police said. The guard gave chase but the car turned east on 12th St. and sped off.
Wallet gone
A Thompson St. resident told police she discovered her wallet was missing at 4:20 p.m. Mon., Oct. 29, when she returned from shopping at Whole Foods Market at Union Square. Police viewed the store’s video surveillance system but could not spot the theft.
Bags gone at clubs
A patron of The Plumm on W. 14th St. near Eighth Ave. put her bag down for a moment while ordering drinks at 1:30 a.m. Fri., Nov. 2, and discovered it open and her wallet gone, police said. A patron of Art Bar, 52 Eighth Ave., put his backpack on the floor next to his chair on Thursday night Nov. 1 and discovered it gone at 10:30 p.m., police said. A patron of a bar at the corner of Bleecker and Grove Sts. had her wallet lifted from her bag, which she left at her table at midnight Wed., Oct. 31, while she went to the bathroom. A patron of Kettle of Fish, 59 Christopher St., told police someone made off with his bag while he was at the bar on Tuesday night Oct. 30.
-Albert Amateau
