The New York Police Department was alerted to a break-in at a local Dunkin’ establishment, where a door’s glass was devastatingly broken on the morning of January 24, 2025. The incident took place at 77A Richmond Hill Road store in the New Springville neighborhood. Shockingly, this incident was not isolated, with many Dunkin’ facilities falling victim to similar break-ins in Staten Island, contributing to a shocking 1,400 percent surge in burglaries within a timeframe of just six days in January, as per the records of NYPD.
Such a rise in criminal behavior during the first five weeks of 2025, saw Staten Island record a startling 177 percent increase in burglary reports when compared to the same period in the previous year. By February 2, fifty distinct homes and businesses had been targeted, nearly tripling the eighteen incidents recorded during the same time frame in 2024. Most fascinatingly, these crime statistics, curated by CompStat, NYPD’s automated crime-tracking network, suggest that most of these instances have transpired within the last fortnight, with business proprietors commonly being the victims.
As the calendar turned to February, despite hopes for a decrease, the burglary trend was undeterred. A total of 19 incidents were reported from January 27 to February 2, an unsettling 375 percent jump compared to the mere four such cases reported during the same period in the previous year, per CompStat data. Such increases indicate a frightening escalation that has far-reaching effects on both the business community and the broader neighborhood.
The 123rd Precinct, providing law enforcement services to the South Shore, has seen the largest increase in burglaries so far, with the number of break-ins rising to a mammoth 700 percent in 2025 versus the same period the preceding year. In raw numbers, there was a total of eight incidents reported until February 2, which is significantly higher than the lone case filed in the previous year.
The 122nd Precinct, which is responsible for the East and South shores of Staten Island, is not immune to the surge either. The burglary cases on its turf witnessed an astonishing 325 percent growth spike too. As a result, the precinct has had to respond to 17 burglary incidents as of February 2, a considerable increase from the mere four encounters from the previous year.
Placed in St. George, the 120th Precinct of the North Shore has also seen a sharp increase in such criminal activities. CompStat data reveals a 220 percent boost in burglary incidences for the year until February 2, representing a three-fold escalation from the previous year’s number – 16 cases compared to merely five the previous year.
In comparison, burglary increases in the 121st Precinct, which oversees areas of the North and West shores, have been relatively contained. The precinct experienced a marginal 12 percent increment in burglaries, with nine occurrences reported as of February 2, compared to only eight during the same time in 2024.
Looking at the NYPD precincts across Staten Island, there were 15 reported burglaries of both residential premises and businesses during the week of January 20-26, a number that provides context to the alarming 1,400 percent spike in the burglary statistic. Notably, the vast majority of these incidents occurred at commercial establishments, inclusive of four Dunkin’ outlets.
The police report includes details of some of the businesses that had fallen prey to burglars during these six days. The list includes a Family Dollar store at 40 Prospect St. in Stapleton, which was targeted around 4:30 a.m. on January 20, a Target located at 2900 Veterans Road West in Charleston, hit at approximately 6:45 p.m. on January 23, and a Walgreens at 2270 Clove Road in Grasmere, which fell victim around 2:15 a.m. on January 25.
In particular, multiple Dunkin’ stores in Staten Island found themselves the focus of burglars during the early hours of Friday, January 24. In the space of a mere three hours, break-ins occurred at Dunkin’ establishments in Stapleton, Great Kills, and New Springville along with the Graniteville location that was mentioned earlier. These details came courtesy of an NYPD spokesperson.
Prompting an official police response in the early morning, the first reported burglary occurred around 12:05 a.m. at the Dunkin’ outlet located at 450 Bay St. in the Stapleton area. The burglar gained forceful entry through a window, taking approximately $1,500 from an office.
Subsequently, at about 12:45 a.m., the Dunkin’ store at 4000 Hylan Boulevard in Great Kills reported a break-in. Assertive measures had to be used by the perpetrators to gain entry, as was evident from the damage at the store.
The third incident to take place occurred at 2:07 a.m. at the Dunkin’ store at 77A Richmond Hill Road in New Springville. Here, two unidentified individuals forcefully entered the store through a door and made off with around $140 from an office before vanishing.
Last in this series of break-ins, the Dunkin’ store at 1776 Forest Ave. in Graniteville was targeted around 3 a.m. According to NYPD, a suspect managed to gain access by forcibly opening a door, subsequently stealing roughly $500 from the premises.
A staff member at the Forest Avenue location narrated the state of affairs, mentioning that the thief broke into the office and pilfered the petty cash once inside. Significantly, the registers were empty as they had been cleansed out before the store officially closed for the day. The employee visually recapitulated the incident, noting that ‘around 3 o’clock someone came, broke the door, went inside, and broke into my office door.’