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By Matthew Perlman
Brooklyn Daily
88th Precinct
Fort Greene–Clinton Hill
Subway stealers
A couple of punks punched a 62-year-old man in the face and stole his phone and $285 in cash inside the Clinton Washington subway station on April 21, authorities said.
The victim told cops he was coming down the stairs near the intersection of Fulton Street and Washington Avenue at 9:55 pm when two goons in their 20s approached him. One of the guys punched him in the face, and took his cash and his phone from his pocket, before both guys ran up to the street, cops said.
Smoke and run
Cops made four arrests at a Grand Avenue apartment on April 25, after an officer observed a man smoking marijuana out front.
Authorities said a police officer noticed the smoker between Putnam and Gates avenues at 3:10 pm, and when he approached the guy took off running into the apartment building.
Police chased the suspect, and during the pursuit he slammed closed a plate glass door, causing it shatter, according to a police report. One of the officers fell during the chase and landed on the broken glass, causing a cut on his right pinky and a gash on his right forearm that required stitches at Long Island College Hospital, the report says. The four arrests were for obstructing justice and assaulting an officer, the report says.
Phone snatcher captured
Cops arrested a 14-year-old on April 26, charging him with two phone snatching incidents in the last week:
• Authorities said the suspect and a partner approached a 21-year-old woman while she walked on Willoughby Avenue near Classon Avenue on April 22 at 8 pm.
The victim told cops one of the teens asked for the time, and when she took her phone out to check he slapped it out of her hand. The partner grabbed the phone and they both took off running, police said.
• Police caught up with the kid when he struck again four days later, near the same intersection.
A 20-year-old woman told police she was on the corner of Willoughby and Classon avenues at 8:30 pm on April 26, when the teen ran up and snatched the phone from her hand. Police were on the scene, and arrested him before he could get away, according to a police report. Cops said that the kid implicated himself in both crimes while in custody with his mother present.
Bus stop shake down
Police said a group of tough guys shook down a 13-year-old while he waited for a bus on Clinton Avenue on April 24.
The teen told police he was waiting for the bus near Lafayette Avenue at 5:55 pm when three guys, who looked to be about 18, came up to him. One of the toughs told the kid, “run your pockets,” while another showed him a knife, according to a police report.
The teen was scared and forked over his phone and wallet, the report says. And after he gave over the goods, the toughs took off on Clinton heading towards Greene Avenue, cops said.
Holy smokes
Cops said a classy criminal made off with three boxes of cigars from a shop on S. Oxford Street on April 25.
Workers at the shop, between Fulton Street and Lafayette Avenue, told police a guy came in at 4:45 pm, while his buddy stood look-out at the door. The inside man grabbed boxes of San Lotano, La Glorin, and La Flor Dominicana cigars, and then the two took off, according to a police report.
Inquiring photographer
Someone stole a 53-year-old’s camera gear while he was photographing a building on Fort Greene Place on April 24.
Cops reported the victim put two bags on the sidewalk between Hanson Place and Lafayette Avenue at 7:30 am so he could take pictures of a building across the street. The bags contained a laptop, a camera, a hard drive, and his wallet, according to a police report.
By the time he finished shooting, the bags were gone, cops said.
A big bump
A pickpocket swiped $2,500 out of a man’s pocket as he was entering a Myrtle Avenue bank on April 25.
The unlucky bank-goer said he was heading into the bank between Waverly and Clinton avenues at 3 pm when someone bumped into him, according to a police report.
When he got to the teller, he noticed his cash was gone from the pocket in his hooded sweatshirt where left it, the report said.
CitiBike bust
Cops cuffed a couple of teens for trying to lift a CitiBike from its dock on Myrtle Avenue on April 26.
Authorities said the kids managed to pry the bike from its dock near Clinton Avenue at 10:55 am, and were heading down Myrtle towards Clermont when they noticed they were being followed.
Police arrested the pair, a 13-year-old boy and a 14-year-old girl, while they still had the hot ride. Police value stolen CitiBikes at $1,200, which makes stealing them a grand larceny.
— Matthew Perlman