Restaurant burglar strikes again
A thief is hitting restaurants in Tribeca and the Financial District, working 
The most recent robbery happened at Arome Cafe, at 7 Dey St., on Thurs., Jan. 15 at 2:45 a.m. The man shattered the glass front door of the restaurant with an unknown object, then went in and grabbed the cash from two registers and fled east on Dey St. towards Broadway, police say.
This is the third incident since last month. At 12:30 a.m. on Sun., Dec. 28, police say he broke into the Asian restaurant Obao, at 38 Water St., by kicking in the glass side entrance and got away with $400 from two registers. On Tues., Jan. 6, he used a fire hydrant cap to break a glass door at Anejo, a restaurant at 301 Church St., at 12:40 a.m. Police say he looked around the restaurant and left empty-handed — seeing nothing that he could grab.
Police are looking for the same suspect, who is about 5”9’, for all three crimes. They released a video and photo of the suspect from the Jan. 6 crime at Anejo:
Subway robber caught
A “lush worker” — one who preys on the sleeping or drunk on the train — was caught after the arresting officer saw the man take an iPhone 6, valued at $869, from a sleeping passenger’s pocket on Fri., Jan 16, according to police.
The victim, a 24-year-old man who lives in the Bronx, was on the A train when the robbery took place at 3:30 p.m. The suspect got off the train at the Chambers St. station and was apprehended with the phone at the corner of Warren and Church Sts.. Police say the suspect, a 32-year-old Queens man, was found with a razor blade on him — a common tool for lush workers, who slice pockets to get what is stored inside.
Cops faster than sneaker thieves
Thieves using fraudulent gift or credit cards have hit the high-end clothing store Balenciaga in Soho for the third time this month — each time for costly sneakers.
Police say that on Wed., Jan. 14, at 12:20 p.m., two teenagers came into the store at 149 Mercer St. and used forged gift cards to buy two pairs of sneakers, worth $1,330. The two men — one 17, one 18 — were caught later that day and arrested. The sneakers were recovered and the teens, both from Brooklyn, were found with several fake gift cards from other stores, such as Zara.
Three days later, on Sat., Jan. 17, a man, 20, used either fake credit cards or gift cards to buy two pairs of sneakers, valued at $665 a pair. Police arrested the Brooklyn man later that day and the sneakers were recovered.
The previous week, on Jan. 10, three people were busted for using fake credit cards at the same store to buy sneakers, which the police also got back.
Soho shoplifting
Last weekend, two high-end boutiques in Soho got hit.
On Sun., Jan. 18, three bold thieves walked into the luxury leather goods MCM store at 2:14 p.m., put 4 very expensive backpacks worth over $5,000 on their backs and got away with a $385 hat to boot, police say.
The items did have security sensors on them and when the three men went to leave, the sensors went off. The security guard at MCM, 100 Greene St., tried to block the thieves, but police say the suspects threatened him, and then the guard moved out of the way.
At the Ralph Lauren store at 109 Prince St., a thief stole a $2,500 purse from the shelf at 5:23 p.m. on Fri., Jan. 16 and then fled on Greene St., police say. The police do not have a description of the suspect.
Thief shops Amazon
A New Jersey woman was enjoying her Chipotle at 2 Broadway in the Financial District, leaving her wallet next her on a chair while she ate on Mon, Jan. 19 at 2:50 p.m. She left and forgot her wallet. When she came back five minutes later, it was gone.
Inside her Prada wallet, worth $500, was $120 in cash, as well as a debit and credit card. The woman, 24, told police there was an unauthorized charge of $57 made to Amazon.
— DUSICA SUE MALESEVIC
