Robbery: Gun drawn, wallet removed
His first mistake was walking home from XL Nightclub — unaccompanied and intoxicated, at the height of last call. That’s when (at 3:45am on Wed., May 29) a 25-year-old man was accosted by three males as he passed 411 W. 42nd St. (Ollie’s Noodle Shop, which had been closed since 11pm). One member of the group (who approached the victim from behind) slammed him against the wall, while another perp held a black handgun to the victim’s chest and demanded his wallet. Perp #2 removed $150 from the wallet, then threw it back to the victim. The perps fled eastbound on 42nd Street, then onto Ninth Avenue. Police canvassed the area, but were unable to locate the men. They did, however, obtain video from a camera on 42nd St. and Ninth Avenue — allowing them to verify that the victim indeed emerged from XL.

Criminal Possession of Stolen Property: Soap dope
We’ve all heard that crime is a dirty business. But how many of us know that it takes six packs of soap to wash away the shame that comes from knowingly breaking the law? A 43-year-old shoplifter will just have to live with the stench emanating from his foul deeds — because police arrested the man before he could make off with his Dove brand booty (retail value, $98.77). The soap dope was caught as he attempted to exit a CVS (500 W. 42nd St., at 10th Ave.).

Grand Larceny: Revenge of the roommate?

Maybe it was their version of coming to get the security deposit. In a W. 14th St. incident that played out like a “Three’s Company” episode gone horribly wrong, a male and female told police that they both left for work one recent morning, only to return to the apartment to find $1,830 worth of property removed from the premises (including a Tiffany watch worth $1,000 and a $530 gold ring). There were no signs of forced entry, so the two chalked it up to a third — that recently departed roommate who left in a huff over a “financial argument.” The gloomy roomie bailed without bothering to return their copy of the apartment keys — securing their place as prime suspect.

Up to their old Tricks

The $50 switcheroo

A cab driver fell hard for one of the oldest tricks in the book — when he picked up a fare at the northwest corner of Seventh Ave. & W. 28th St. at around 2am on Wed., May 29. When the cab reached W. 18th & Seventh, the passenger told the driver to stop — at which point the fare (hereafter referred to as the “perp”) handed the driver (aka the “victim”) a real $50 bill. As the victim was getting change, the perp asked for the bill back, then handed the victim a counterfeit $50 while pocketing his change ($40 in genuine U.S. currency). Before the victim could discover the ruse, the perp had fled eastbound on 18 St., into the night. Officers from the 10th Precinct canvassed the nearby area, with negative results.

Street scam cost her 7K

The Pigeon Drop — a classic weapon in the confidence man’s arsenal — was deployed with great skill on the streets of Chelsea, by two women. The drop went down just before noon on Sat., June 1. That’s when a 30-year-old female from Queens was approached on W. 28th St. (btw. 8th & 9th Aves.) by two females unknown to the (soon-to-be) victim. The woman was shown a wallet full of money, then told by the tricksters that they would split the cash with her. The only thing the victim had to do was withdraw half the amount from her bank (as a sign of trust and confidence). Then, they promised, she’d get double the amount given to them. Convinced she’d stumbled into a fast money-making opportunity, the victim proceeded to her bank (Chase, at 475 W. 23rd St. and 10th Ave.) and withdrew $7,000. The perps, who were waiting in a car parked outside the bank, took the money and sped off. The victim soon realized she’d been had — but didn’t come to that realization in time to note the car’s plate number, or even its make.

—Scott Stiffler