A baby-faced bandit allegedly robbed a Manhattan shopkeeper at knifepoint — and was then caught smiling widely as he used the worker’s stolen credit card, cops said Wednesday.
The happy-looking teen was shown on surveillance footage at an East Harlem bodega just an hour after the violent Feb. 2 heist, according to the NYPD.
The young suspect and three others had burst into an electronic store on Clinton Street in the Lower East Side at around 4 p.m., wearing masks and demanding property.
The curly-haired teen and another robber — both holding blades — forced their way behind the counter, according to police.
One of the crooks then held a knife to a clerk’s throat and demanded cash before taking the victim’s wallet, keys and cell phone, cops said.
A third robber used a hammer to shatter display cases and snatch a variety of electronics, cops said. The foursome fled with about $12,000 worth of goods and cash.
The teen then tried to use the credit card around 5 p.m. at a store about six miles uptown, near NYCHA’s George Washington Houses, cops said.
Police didn’t release the address of the store, but said they believe the pictured teen lives in the area.
There were no reported injuries as a result of the robbery.
Surveillance photos depicting two of the four individuals, obtained from the electronics store, were released by cops last week.
Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/ or on Twitter @NYPDTips.
All calls are strictly confidential.
