The New York Police Department is calling for the public’s assistance in identifying certain individuals allegedly involved in over 20 criminal incidents across three boroughs—Staten Island, Brooklyn, and Queens. These individuals are believed to have used menacing tactics, including violence and trickery, to rob ride-share drivers.
These incidents, suspected to form a grand larceny pattern, have seen the individuals predominantly target the victims’ mobile phones. A significant number of these criminal activities, numbering up to six, took place on Staten Island.
The suspects have reportedly resorted to violent means in several cases, subjecting the victims to physical aggression. Instances of punching, pushing, and kicking aren’t uncommon, and they’ve even gone as far as damaging security devices present in the vehicles.
In other instances, the suspects seemed to favor deception to achieve their objectives. They often requested changes to the destination address in an attempt to gain access to the drivers’ phones.
The series of thefts began unfolding in Brooklyn during November, later proliferating to Queens. Notably, the first 14 incidents were confined to these two regions. It wasn’t until incident 15 that the pattern emerged in Staten Island for the first time, on January 8.
In this aforementioned episode, two unknown individuals managed to forcibly seize an iPhone from a 44-year-old victim, after they’d entered his vehicle. They also damaged the camera located within the passenger area of his car and promptly vacated the scene without causing any physical harm to the victim.
In a shocking follow-up to the theft, the stolen iPhone was used to execute a transaction worth $10,000 via the online payment service, Zelle.
Unfolding next was the 16th reported event, wherein a 25-year-old victim’s iPhone 14 Pro Max was seized by two unidentified individuals, who also displayed a knife in the process. In the aftermath of this incident, multiple transactions amounting to $7,000 were noted; however, no physical injuries were reported.
The 18th reported case saw two individuals entering a 38-year-old victim’s car and reportedly borrowing the driver’s iPhone 16 Pro Max under the pretext of changing their destination. Upon securing the device, they quickly left the scene, leaving the victim unharmed.
In a similar incident, a 37-year-old ride-share driver was deceived by two individuals who asked to alter their destination. After one of the suspects disembarked from the vehicle, requesting the use of his charger, the second suspect seized the dash camera and the victim’s iPhone. They fled on foot, leaving the victim unscathed.
Yet another episode involved a 36-year-old victim whose car was entered by two unknown individuals. After the victim denied their request to use his mobile for revising their drop-off location, one of the suspects assaulted the victim from behind. They managed to remove the dash camera and escape the scene. The victim, although subjected to minor injuries, did not require hospitalization.
The 22nd reported event starred two unidentified individuals entering a 52-year-old victim’s vehicle. On displaying his iPhone 15 to answer one of the suspect’s queries regarding their destination, it was forcefully taken from him. The perpetrators then made a swift escape, heading southbound, with the victim fortunately escaping any physical harm.
Following the majority of these thefts, the suspects absconded by foot. In addition to the detailed incidents, the NYPD has reported several more events displaying the same pattern in Brooklyn and Queens.
In their bid to solve this wave of criminal activities, the NYPD has released images of the suspects to news outlets, hoping to expedite their identification process. They have asked anyone with valuable information regarding these incidents to come forward and contact the Crime Stoppers Hotline.
Importantly, the NYPD guarantees full confidentiality to anyone willing to assist in this investigation by tipping them off or choosing to share potentially crucial information, regardless of language barriers, including for the Spanish-speaking community.
The series of thefts have heightened the sense of insecurity among ride-share drivers, affecting their day-to-day actions and forcing many to take extra precautions. The NYPD is working manifold to apprehend the suspects and restore peace to the affected communities.