Crime & Safety

Teen Charged in String of Gunpoint Robberies

Sixteen-year-old charged with four strong-arm muggings near the Franklin Avenue train station.

A teen has been charged in at least four strong-arm muggings in a spate of robberies since Thanksgiving.

The 16-year-old was arrested in December after victims in two separate incidents picked his mug shot out from a photo array, said Dep. Inspector Elvio Capocci, head of the 77th Precinct.

While Patch , we just learned about the additional charges.   

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The teen is charged in just a few of nearly a dozen strong-arm muggings in the neighborhood since Thanksgiving:

- a woman was held-up in a Lincoln Place building stairwell, and a man was robbed while walking to the bus on Dean Street;

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- On Dec. 19, there was   and Vanderbilt Avenue;

- On Dec. 8, a man was mugged as he was ;

- On Dec. 1, ;  

- And the there were four.

According to Capocci, the arrest has caused a drop in gun-point robberies around Franklin Avenue, but he warned that there are other muggers out there.

“Be smart, be cognizant of who’s around you and secure your electronics,” he said, adding that people should avoid walking alone whenever possible.

One option for getting home safely is the , a free volunteer escort service.

 

Anyone with information on any of the above crimes can submit tips to Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS (8477), on the Crime Stoppers' website or by texting their tips to CRIMES (274637), then enter TIP577.  All calls are strictly confidential.


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