Phone stolen out of my hands today - 4th Ave & 5th St

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Phone stolen out of my hands today - 4th Ave & 5th St

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canyontothesky
getting it
Joined: May '09
Posts: 218

Hi all. Just got home from the precinct. Today at 1:10pm, I was walking southbound on 4th avenue on the east side of the street. I'd just left the Park Slope Infusion Center, where I volunteer, and just steps from the building, as I was crossing 5th street, a guy approached me and snatched my iphone right out of my hands as I was hitting the "end" button from a phone call. He then ran (and I ran after him) eastbound on 5th street, and got into a waiting car near about 592 5th street that made a left onto 5th avenue going north. The car was faded green, beat up, an older model, an American car likely, had a boxy rear. New Jersey plates, containing 4, W, K and E (but this is in no particular order, I think it started with 4). The guy was 5'10-6'2, black, 16-25, close cut, light/medium complexion, thin, absolutely straight-line profile, no bulk to him or his clothes whatsoever, wearing a black jacket with a brown plaid shirt poking out the bottom, well dressed, not menacing looking guy. Didn't say anything as he approached, didn't get a really great look at him. He turned off my phone so it's not traceable.

Just posting all of this here in case this has happened to you or does happen, please report it because with your information, plus mine, might be able to lead to his arrest. Snatching the phone from my hands marks it grand larceny.

I was not injured. It's all fine, just a lost phone, thank god I wasn't rifling through my handbag, else it would have been taken. I know these things happen and it's not really my phone I'm looking out for, just justice for the fact that stupid idiots do these things. It's annoying that I wasted 2.5 hours of my life dealing with this and I have to get a new phone and I think I am in the middle of my contract. ha.

Also the NYPD I dealt with were all suuuper nice, so thank you to them for the help!

# Posted 3 mos ago
puply
getting it
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 82

Sorry to hear about your experience. It is great to know you were not harmed. I hope they catch the criminals.

I myself have a tendency to use my phone in the street, no matter where. Not very safe, as your experience proves. The fact that the fellow had an accomplice with NJ plates is not very reassuring. Are they driving all the way to a place they know will result in easy targets?

# Posted 3 mos ago
dailyheights
Honorary Fellow
Joined: Jan '05
Posts: 4,608

Interested to see if this "NJ Thief" thing is for real. Let's see if anybody corroborates it: http://www.brooklynian.com/2012/02/08/iphone-snatching-epidemic-are-bridge-and-tunnel-thieves-making-field-trips-to-brooklyn-for-easy-marks/

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# Posted 3 mos ago
canyontothesky
getting it
Joined: May '09
Posts: 218

Interesting idea. I agree with the cops who suspected that the car was a stolen one. Not that I would be surprised if they drove here from Jersey, but I'd bet they live in another part of Brooklyn instead.

My own tendency to use my phone anywhere has been 100% ended by the fact that I'm now using a 2008 3G that's extremely slow due to its age and I can't find any friends or friends-of-friends who have a 4 to sell. I barely touch this thing, I think I've made 1 phone call since Wednesday. A few nights ago I was looking for the Radio Shack that's in Port Authority and I walked up to some cops sitting on 42nd street and asked if they knew where it was because I was too afraid to pull out my cell phone to look on google maps (and they proceeded to look it up for me on THEIR iPhone 4s... sigh)!

# Posted 3 mos ago
canyontothesky
getting it
Joined: May '09
Posts: 218

PS Puply, I appreciate your admittance that you too use your phone on the street. Since it happened, a) I've been seeing at least 10 people per day who are holding their phones exactly as I was and b) have had friends kind of downplay their own tendency, as though they don't do the same thing (although they feel badly that it happened to me)

# Posted 3 mos ago