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By Colin Mixson
Brooklyn Daily
You can call him the Smoking Monkey Bandit.
Cops at the 61st Precinct have noticed an alarming trend of late-night, armed robberies along commercial strips in Sheepshead Bay, and cops believe a single gun-wielding, monkey-mask-wearing, Newport-smoking crook may be responsible for the terror targeting bodega workers in the night.
“We’re thinking it’s one guy,” said a source within the precinct. “He probably lost his job, or he’s got a drug habit. Something happened to this guy, where he feels like he had to turn to crime.”
The first and most lucrative score for Sheepshead Bay’s robbery fiend came from an Avenue Z deli between E. 12th Street and Homecrest Avenue at 3:30 pm on Oct. 22, when the crook, sporting a monkey mask and a black firearm, waltzed in and began snarling demands, cops said.
“Give me the money m-----------,” the crook growled.
The score netted the monkey-masked robber $1,300 and five packs of Newport cigarettes — which, based on loot grabbed in subsequent robberies, appears to be the crook’s smoke of choice.
His next mark was a Neptune Avenue bodega between E. 12th and E. 14th avenues at 4 am on Nov. 16, where the crook cleaned out the register for $120 and swiped a single pack of — you guessed it — Newport.
The thief’s latest attack came a day later, when he struck an Emmons Avenue deli between Ford and Coyle streets at 11:15 pm on Nov. 17, where the masked crook made off with a whopping $80, but didn’t take any smokes that time.
Cops are asking for the public’s assistance in tracking down the Smoking Monkey Bandit, and have made up a list of tips to help bodega workers protect themselves.
• Keep the establishment well lit on the interior as well as the exterior during evening and late-night hours
• Install and ensure that there is a properly working video surveillance system on the premises, covering the interior and exterior of the store
• If possible, arrange to have at least two employees working during late evening and early morning hours
• Remove advertisements and posters from the front window that may obstruct the view into the store from the outside
• Immediately dial 911 if there is a suspicious person inside or outside of the establishment
Anyone with information regarding the crook is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1 (800) 577-8477. The public can also submit tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at www.nypdcrimestoppers.com or by texting their tips to 274637 (CRIMES) then enter TIP577. All calls are strictly confidential.