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Summarize this content to 100 words This week, several undercover officers took journalists on patrol on a crowded 7th subway train from Manhattan to Queens. Main Street in Flushing is a popular place for pickpockets. The New York Post got an inside look at the work of the pickpocketing department.
Beware of an elderly woman with a cane or a mother with two children on the subway. They may have just stolen your wallet, iPhone, or other valuables.
“Of course, criminals are dominated by men, but you would be surprised by mothers with children, as well as older men and women who are dexterous in their pockets,” said First Lieutenant Jonathan Cedeno, who works undercover on the New York City pickpocketing team. police.
Some mothers with children work in tandem with other family members, some just pretend to be a family. But many of them have been doing this for a long time and believe me, they are very sophisticated in their actions.
Photos of wanted pickpockets adorn the walls of the underground office of the new NYPD team. Its employees catch pickpockets in the city’s subway, which is visited daily by more than 4 million people.
On the subject: Artificial intelligence monitors those who do not pay fares on the New York subway
Dressed in baseball caps, plus two layers of T-shirts and sweatshirts to hide their cameras, visors and cuffs, the cops blend in seamlessly with the crowd. They work in teams using Airpods to communicate with each other while on patrol – just like criminals do.
“They have a unique eye,” Captain James Soares, who leads the unit, said of the carefully selected detectives and officers. “They know what to look for, they follow suspicious faces from the subway to the street and vice versa. You would be surprised who is trying to rob you. They don’t always fit the stereotypical image of pickpockets. Our main mission is to stop criminals right before they actually get a phone or wallet from a person.”
The official name of the division is the Transit Bureau Special Operations Division Citywide Pickpocket Unit.
The department was organized last fall. It is always available, especially during holiday periods and during events such as the Subway Series and the upcoming US Open tennis tournament.
The connection between pickpockets from South America and New York has intensified since 2018, when international pickpocket networks from Chile and Colombia began to infiltrate all five boroughs in the city. Stolen cell phones are sold in bulk by thieves, mostly to South American buyers, Cedeno said.
“We spend some of our time looking into the case, reviewing security footage, checking wanted criminals,” Sgt. John Pritchard explained on Tuesday, July 25, as he prepared to go on patrol dressed as a baseball fan. Employees, going on a mission, put on a body camera to record crimes.
Cedeno said Precinct 109 in Flushing, with its many open markets and crowds, is one of the most popular places for pickpockets.
“Some Asians usually carry a lot of cash with them, but if it is stolen, they will not report the crime,” he said. “That makes the area very attractive to pickpockets.”
On the subject: MTA makes the metro safer: barriers will be installed on the platforms of three stations
Thieves often study their victims by watching them withdraw money from ATMs and then follow them to the subway where they try to distract and steal the money. A common scheme for scammers is to work in pairs: one of them accidentally spills mustard on the victim, the second puts his hand into the bag of an unsuspecting victim.
Of the 594 violent robberies on public transport reported this year, 189 involve pickpocketing, a local police spokesman said. Soares advises tourists and New Yorkers alike to keep their belongings — phones, wallets, backpacks and bags — out of the back.
“Just keep everything in front, even the suitcases,” he said. “Keep them in front of you.”
The post Beware of women with children and the elderly: atypical pickpockets are operating in New York appeared first on ForumDaily New York.
Beware of women with children and the elderly: atypical pickpockets are operating in New York
This week, several undercover officers took journalists on patrol on a crowded 7th subway train from Manhattan to Queens. Main Street in Flushing is a popular place for pickpockets. The New York Post got an inside look at the work of the pickpocketing department.
Beware of an elderly woman with a cane or a mother with two children on the subway. They may have just stolen your wallet, iPhone, or other valuables.
“Of course, criminals are dominated by men, but you would be surprised by mothers with children, as well as older men and women who are dexterous in their pockets,” said First Lieutenant Jonathan Cedeno, who works undercover on the New York City pickpocketing team. police.
Some mothers with children work in tandem with other family members, some just pretend to be a family. But many of them have been doing this for a long time and believe me, they are very sophisticated in their actions.
Photos of wanted pickpockets adorn the walls of the underground office of the new NYPD team. Its employees catch pickpockets in the city’s subway, which is visited daily by more than 4 million people.
On the subject: Artificial intelligence monitors those who do not pay fares on the New York subway
Dressed in baseball caps, plus two layers of T-shirts and sweatshirts to hide their cameras, visors and cuffs, the cops blend in seamlessly with the crowd. They work in teams using Airpods to communicate with each other while on patrol – just like criminals do.
“They have a unique eye,” Captain James Soares, who leads the unit, said of the carefully selected detectives and officers. “They know what to look for, they follow suspicious faces from the subway to the street and vice versa. You would be surprised who is trying to rob you. They don’t always fit the stereotypical image of pickpockets. Our main mission is to stop criminals right before they actually get a phone or wallet from a person.”
The official name of the division is the Transit Bureau Special Operations Division Citywide Pickpocket Unit.
The department was organized last fall. It is always available, especially during holiday periods and during events such as the Subway Series and the upcoming US Open tennis tournament.
The connection between pickpockets from South America and New York has intensified since 2018, when international pickpocket networks from Chile and Colombia began to infiltrate all five boroughs in the city. Stolen cell phones are sold in bulk by thieves, mostly to South American buyers, Cedeno said.
“We spend some of our time looking into the case, reviewing security footage, checking wanted criminals,” Sgt. John Pritchard explained on Tuesday, July 25, as he prepared to go on patrol dressed as a baseball fan. Employees, going on a mission, put on a body camera to record crimes.
Cedeno said Precinct 109 in Flushing, with its many open markets and crowds, is one of the most popular places for pickpockets.
“Some Asians usually carry a lot of cash with them, but if it is stolen, they will not report the crime,” he said. “That makes the area very attractive to pickpockets.”
On the subject: MTA makes the metro safer: barriers will be installed on the platforms of three stations
Thieves often study their victims by watching them withdraw money from ATMs and then follow them to the subway where they try to distract and steal the money. A common scheme for scammers is to work in pairs: one of them accidentally spills mustard on the victim, the second puts his hand into the bag of an unsuspecting victim.
Of the 594 violent robberies on public transport reported this year, 189 involve pickpocketing, a local police spokesman said. Soares advises tourists and New Yorkers alike to keep their belongings — phones, wallets, backpacks and bags — out of the back.
“Just keep everything in front, even the suitcases,” he said. “Keep them in front of you.”
The post Beware of women with children and the elderly: atypical pickpockets are operating in New York appeared first on ForumDaily New York.
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