Three teenagers beat and rob man at NYC subway station: cops
Three teenagers — one of them wielding a boxcutter — beat and robbed a man at a Bronx subway station late last week, police said Sunday.
The trio came up to the 52-year-old victim at about 4:55 a.m. on Friday, April 14, as he walked up the staircase toward the Mosholu Parkway 4 Line Train Station at Jerome Avenue and Mosholu Parkway, the NYPD said.
One of the boys put the man in a headlock and pulled a boxcutter, while the other two kicked him in the ribs and stole his wallet, backpack and about $350, cops said. Then they fled into a nearby building on Grand Concourse.
The victim was brought to the hospital with minor injuries.
The NYPD described one of the suspects as a teenager with a dark complexion who stood about 5 foot, 7 inches and weighed 150 pounds. He wore a blue shirt, gray hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans and white sneakers.
The second suspect is a teenager with a light complexion with the same height and build, cops said. He wore a black and white hooded sweatshirt, black pants and tan sneakers.
Police said the third teenager also had a light complexion but was a little smaller at 5 foot, 5 inches and about 130 pounds. He wore a black hooded sweatshirt, black pants and black shoes.
On Sunday morning, straphangers in the city’s northernmost borough told The Post that they’re worried for their safety.
“I don’t go on the bus or train alone anymore,” said Elle E., a 44-year-old mother of two who was getting on the No. 4 train alongside her husband. “It’s too dangerous everywhere, not just in the Bronx. So many fights and crazy people now.”
A 62-year-old woman named Maimuna told The Post that she tells friends to stay off the subway in the early morning.
“It’s too early, it’s too dangerous because that happens here,” she said. “It’s not safe. I wait, usually wait until 6:30 to leave. I say better late and alive.”
Michael, a 37-year-old MTA contractor, was shocked when he heard about Friday’s brutal mugging.
“This is like one of the safest subway stops around here!” he told The Post. “This is the first I’ve ever heard of somebody getting mugged or robbed here.”
But he noted that the weekends bring a more menacing crowd to the city’s ancient underground.
“It’s a little different, a little dangerous,” he said. “I go out later or I don’t go out at night. All the trains now – early in the morning or late at night on the weekends – are asking for trouble.”
Meanwhile, a pair of cops at a Dunkin’ Donuts across the street from the train station feigned shock when a Post reporter told them about the robberies.
“Kids robbing people on the subway? No! Never happens!” said one of the officers, who didn’t seem particularly intent on nabbing the suspects. “What’s the point of catching them if you’re just going to let them go? We don’t like catch and release.”
The NYPD is also looking for two men who allegedly tried to rob a 31-year-old man last Monday at about 2:30 a.m. in Brooklyn.
The pair approached the victim on the L train platform at the Myrtle Avenue and Wyckoff Avenue Train Station, police said. They began kicking and punching the victim, then unsuccessfully tried to steal his wallet and pull off his shoes.
Police said the victim fought them off, but suffered minor injuries and was brought to the hospital anyway.
Cops described the first man as between 25 to 30 years old, about 6 feet tall with a medium build. He was wearing a red baseball hat, blue jean jacket, blue jeans, and tan sneakers.
The other man was in the same age range and about the same height and build, cops said. He wore a black jacket, black jeans and white sneakers.
Police are asking anyone with information about either crime 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 Crime Stoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/, or on Twitter @NYPDTips. All calls are strictly confidential.
