By Carol Tannenhauser
In a broad-daylight, orchestrated burglary, five youths, reported by the police to be between the ages of 14 and 20, allegedly stole $650 from a newsstand on Broadway near West 77th Street, on Monday at around 4:55 p.m.
One of the individuals “distracted the 57-year-old male employee by attempting to remove sodas without payment,” police said, while another entered the newsstand and took $650 from the register. The three other individuals acted as lookouts. All were last seen fleeing southbound on Broadway. There were no injuries.
Here are descriptions of the perpetrators provided by the NYPD:
- male with a dark complexion, slim build, approximately 5’8” tall, and approximately 14 to 20 years old. He was last seen wearing a dark vest, dark green hooded sweatshirt, dark colored pants and gray sneakers. The individual has a cast on his right arm.
- male with a light complexion, slim build, approximately 5’8” to 5’10” tall, and approximately 14 to 20 years old. He was last seen wearing a black ski mask, black hooded jacket, black sweatpants, and black sneakers. He is carrying a gray book bag.
- male with a dark complexion, medium build, approximately 5’10” tall, and approximately 14 to 20 years old. He was last seen wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, gray sweatpants and black sneakers. He is carrying a black book bag.
- male with a dark complexion, slim build, approximately 5’8” tall, and approximately 14 to 20 years old. He was last seen wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, dark pants and black and white sneakers.
- male with a dark complexion, medium build, approximately 5’8” tall, and approximately 14 to 20 years old. He was last seen wearing a black mask, black hooded sweatshirt, black vest, black pants, and black shoes.
Anyone with information regarding 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 tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/, or on Twitter @NYPDTips.
All calls are strictly confidential.
Sad. Troubling. There’s a sense of helplessness and frustration among law-abiding citizens in the community. Whether aggressive pan handling, dirt bike riders, quality of life issues, brazen robberies … what is happening? How do we turn it around?
By voting for people who are not blinded by ideology
At the polls – vote Republican. Make this end.
Nope. There are plenty of law and order Democrats who don’t want to ban books, control the teaching of history, control womens’ bodies, and control what men and wear and what sex we are, not to mention their attempted overthrow of the United States government on January 6 and propagation of the orange felon’s election steal lies. I will vote for normal people, thank you.
Republican are no better. They would just increase guns.
Aren’t these the same people who plotted and carried out the violent insurrection at the Capitol?
In the short term, the way to turn it around is to implement harsh punishments. In Singapore, the punishment is caning and I am pretty sure that it is an effective deterrent. If there is no deterrent, as is the case here, we can expect more robberies.
So you believe that beating people, perhaps to death is a good deterrent? How about teaching people values, democracy, good deeds. How about parents teaching their children how to behave. Let’s do that before we beat people to death and live in a fascist dictatorship!!!
Your offer is not an immediate solution. But punishment will stop this crimes right away, and after that, slowly, they can start taking care of education and teaching these kids about good things
As of this time, 36 commenters “Liked” Max’s Beatings. 3 Commenters “Liked Florence’s democracy.
Fascism is winning.
Corporal punishment, a method of holding criminals accountable for their crimes is not an inherent feature of the political system known as fascism. Fascism is a system of government while corporal punishment is a tactic of a penal system.
When you just throw words around without thinking about their meaning you cheapen the value of words overall. If you think corporal punishment is cruel and unusual make that argument but don’t conflate it with Fascism.
Holding criminals to the law is fascism?
This is so upsetting. I am so sick of seeing crime as the top story in West Side Rag, although I understand the necessity to share. Like many I feel somewhat helpless about bail reform and what it is doing to our streets, I have tried to be sympathetic to the police who can’t keep up with the shoplifters. But, I am outraged at people on the street getting robbed at 4:55 pm and no one noticing.
Last night, I read on a neighborhood app that a young Asian woman was hit in the head from behind on 104 and Broadway @ 5:30pm the other day. Where are our police now?
there are people sitting in jail for years awaiting trial–not convicted, just charged, but in jail. maybe we need more judges?
The 20Th Precinct is quite aware of this, and they do nothing because they’re juveniles!!!!
A few years ago they would have been stoped, questioned and frisked and no robbery would have occurred.
This will almost certainly end with the arrest of the juveniles, the 20 Precinct will do their job. They will receive zero punishment because of RAISE THE AGE.
It seems to me that if a suspect has no criminal record, the judge should be empowered to release this person without bail, and with a date for return for trial. . But if there is a prior conviction, the judge should be obligated to send this person to jail to await trial.
Release without bail no matter how violent the crime?
We have problems, for sure, but it is inaccurate (and nonsensical) to attribute them to bail reform.
Under bail reform, repeat offenders for categories of crime which are categorized as Class A misdemeanors will result in cashless bail and the offender will be released within 24 hours regardless of the number of their prior arrests in this category. Because there are no meaningful consequences, there is no incentive for these individuals and others to stop committing these crimes. Bail reform is absolutely an issue. Because no weapons were apparently used in this robbery, it’s a Class A misdemeanor.
Are we forgetting the fact that pretrial incarceration is NOT a consequence? We are a nation of laws. Consequences for breaking the law come AFTER the trial, not before. So bail reform is not denying consequences under the law. If they are charged with a misdemeanor, and get jail time in their sentence, they will serve time in jail. If the sentence does not include jail time, they will not serve jail time. This has nothing to do with bail or bail reform. Bail reform does not mean that people who commit crimes will not get consequences. Why is it so hard to see this? People keep spouting these talking points and argue them with such conviction. But they aren’t thinking about it and are just repeating what someone else told them. Think people, think.
“Under bail reform, repeat offenders for categories of crime which are categorized as Class A misdemeanors will result in cashless bail and the offender will be released within 24 hours regardless of the number of their prior arrests in this category”
Might I remind you and all the other fear mongerers here who believe this is something new courtesy of “soft on crime” lbbbrrrrlsss.
The night Patricia Meili was horribly attacked in Central Park (“Central Park Jogger”), there were gangs of teenagers (and possibly some older folk) “wilding” in the north eastern part of the park.
(Where “wilding” means “harass, attack, and sometimes beat up Whitey”).
When the police finally got involved and arrested some of them, the cops were going to give them Desk Appearance Tickets.
It was only after Ms. Meili was found that they actually held onto some of the suspects.
(And we know the rest of that story, which isn’t really relevant for now. But the DAT deal was _standard_ back then).
Bail reform has contributed to a climate where criminals know there will be little to no consequences for their actions. And that’s significant to an impressionable teen
Can you please explain HOW bail reform has created an environment where there are no consequences for committing crimes?
Because the perp is released within hours when caught and can just go out and commit the same crime over and over, and does.
It may be inaccurate ( i have not examined the data in detail) but it is by no means nonsensical. If that conclusion is based only on dropping crime rates it may or may not be dispositive. When almost every violent crime we read about or see on TV is perpetrated by someone with multiple convictions or by someone who is out free while awaiting trial for a prior violent crime, the public’s trust in the justice system is broken. It is not unreasonable to give judges discretion on bail matters.
In the absence or meaningful intervention by the courts and police is crime dropping or just underreported since many might feel “ what’s the point in reporting”
I am only attributing bail reform to our police keeping up with shoplifters and absolutely nothing else! The comment meant that by the time they are done with paperwork these criminals are back on the street, so it is a why bother. But this broad daylight out in the open violence garbage I am NOT blaming on bail reform, I am blaming on lack of policing in our neighborhoods!
So do you believe that there should be groups of cops on every block in NYC in the event there’s going to be a robbery? Totally impossible. ..
Perhaps it would be more productive to help these hopeless youths to figure out what they plan to do with their lives going forward…The way they’re acting at the moment is going to lead to nowhere. … Sad,
Since we have cameras and good photos, maybe we should have “wanted for questioning” posters, inside the subways, for example. We have the right to know what is going on in our city, regardless of stats. We need to —collectively—be involved in “policing.”
I don’t believe in unrealistic solutions, I do believe in showing up and hindering crime. I am not talking about an army, I am talking about visibility midday and not sitting in front of my Duane Reade on a phone.
Also, please don’t tell me about helping hopeless youth. I have been substituting in the public elementary schools on the UWS for the last 8 mths. Teachers are amazing, but they aren’t babysitters, and the school system is desperately underfunded. What they teach at school is NOT reinforced at home in many cases and when an 8 year old hugs you tightly you know those type of hugs aren’t happening at home. The immigrant children coming into this city (do not make this political, it is a human issue) have no means of communicating with many teachers because of language, so that leads to a whole other set of issues. This is about Visibility!!!!
Schools are not under funded, NYC budget per pupil is $40K per annum. The problem is only $10K per pupil reaches the school, the rest is consumed by bureaucrats
As a former teacher, I salute your substituting. You are doing important work.
Thank you. Substituting, especially on the UWS has given me a whole different perspective on the city. Reading these comments and throwing stones from glass houses doesn’t do a thing. Getting your hands dirty can!!! After living on the UWS for 30+ years and putting a child through the public school system, I can now say, I have seen this city and our neighborhood in a way the WSR could never explain! No news outlet or politician can give you the real deal either, but ask a teacher at a public school. They will tell you how tough it is to be a kid. This is not an excuse for destructive and dangerous behavior, but it starts here with no funds or help!
I feel bad for the youths who are becoming stereotyped by all the crime that some other youths commit. It seems like in every story it is youths that are committing the crimes.
Are other adults stereotyped by those adults who commit crimes? These so called “youths” are criminals so who cares what age they are. One thing in common should be harsher sentences for all. Enough is enough!
If you are 14-17 years old you are inclined to do things without regards for repercussions. If there are no repercussions at all, there is little chance of them not doing stupid stuff. Science of adolescent brain development, not hysterical, racist internet commentary,
Just because these offenders are not being imprisoned while they await trial doesn’t mean that there are no repercussions from their actions. They’ll eventually go to trial, and if found guilty, will be punished. If they skip bail, there will be a warrant for their arrest, and they will be held the next time they’re arrested.
They are not being prosecuted. That is the lack of repercussions….
Witnessed a group of kids ransack the 72nd street Duane Reade yesterday afternoon. The could not have been older than 14. The security guard and employees just stood by and watched. Are we really that afraid of 14 year olds just because they act like punks?
Please do not deride store clerks and security guards for standing by and suggest they’re “afraid.” Understand the legal and physical downside to intervening. First, retail employees are told to never physically touch a shoplifter because they and the store can be sued for a variety of reasons. Second, do you really think someone who makes $15-$20 an hour should risk physical assault or death for some easily replaced merchandise? If this group of kids were just under-14 “punks” per your words, what did you do? Admonish them? Call the police? Follow them home and tell their parents? If none of the above, I don’t blame you. But remember taking action is easier said than done, and not just someone else’s job.
Then why do corporate retailers even hire security? They’re neither deterrents nor interventionists. Is it simply shallow compliance and meaningless optics? Better to save that money and give p/t job opportunities to, and put cash into the pockets of, disaffected youth.
They are there to call 911 if there is a medical emergency or evacuate the store if there is a fire. They are required by insurance. They are not loss prevention. That isn’t allowed in NYC.
Security means nothing if they do nothing.
Yes, we are afraid and with good reason. And, yes, they are punks. Very sad.
Sadly, youths younger than 14 carry guns and knives and tend to act much bolder when in groups. As for me, yes, I am really that afraid of a gang of teenagers acting like punks.
A “group” of 14 year-olds can do a lot of damage….
That’s not about fear—that’s about sophisticated cost/benefit analysis that determines it ultimately costs less to allow such activity than to prevent and/or prosecute it. Like so much in corporate America, that’s about “maximizing shareholder value” and managing the bottom line.
Yes, we’re that afraid of 14-yr-old punks. Send a thank you note to Albany and City Hall.
Send the thank you note to CVS Corporate who makes the decision to do nothing.
CVS does nothing because it has nothing to lose. Losses from the thefts (known in the industry as “shrinkage”) are made up by raising prices. So, it is the customers who pay for it.
In a brief conversation with the cashier at Duane Reade on 79th and Amsterdam, I was told that they are instructed to not call authorities for store theft. They are not to intervene in any way. Due to this policy, she said that they have their “regulars” that come in, grab beer, wave to them and walk out the door.
Yet, I’m the fool, that stands in line with the other hard working yo-yos, to spend our money, when we could also walk out the door without consequence. How is this progress? Please explain it to me.
Terrible. I feel the same way when I see people jump or jimmy the turnstile in the subway or come onto a bus through the back door.
bring back broken-windows, squeegee guy policing and a judicial system with consequences.
Easier to complain about City Hall.
It’s a catch-all.
Nothing to do, just gripe about City Hall.
Why employ a security guard ?
UWS and NYC has voted itself into a hole that will take many years to climb out of. I lived in the neighborhood for 10 years and loved it, but moved away after it became too risky for my mother to come visit me and walk the neighborhood by herself. When older people cannot walk with peace of mind, that’s not civilization.
I agree with you Luca with one exception……. If the law abiding citizens of NYC vote for people who are not soft on crime, we can get ourselves out of this crime ridden hole rather quickly. It will not take many years.
I hear the hope in your writing.
You are confusing not giving the death penalty to an unarmed shoplifter with being soft on crime.
Please credit MAGA when using theirTalking Points.
Your phrase ‘voted itself into a hole’ is brilliant. I’m stealing it.
Diane di Stasio is going to be running against Gale Brewer. Moderate Republican. Please people, Look into her candidacy. Send a message. Make a protest vote. And of you can’t do that then skip the election. Gale Brewer can’t be allowed to just cruise to victory. Not again
I just went to di Stasio’s website. Nothing on there identifying her as a Republican. Strange, since most UWS voters won’t be able to vote for her in the primary, since most are not registered Republicans. But maybe there will not be a Republican primary? She is on the Manhattan Republicans’ website.
Zero plans. She talks about making the city better but offers 0 solutions.
She needs to run as a Democrat. There are many people on the UWS who have understandably been traumatized by what is happening in Washington and will not vote for a Republican no matter how moderate they are. The word “Republican” is too loaded these days.
She also needs to very quickly build out her web site and platform. And more actively get her name out there. Name recognition is critical – that is why incumbents have an advantage, even if they are disliked. And the web site, though it mentions some key issues in generalities, really doesn’t say a lot. She has to be all in if she wants to win.
I agree that she should switch parties and run as a moderate Democrat. She’ll never defeat Brewer as a Republican. And even as a Democrat she’ll need a huge upsurge on many fronts.
she’s adorable, but does not say what specific steps she believes will ensure safety
Thanks Bill! I went to her website. Her number one issue to address is safety for the UWS. I like her already. I will definitely do some more research on her. I don’t know if WSR will allow a link, but here you go: https://www.dianeforny.com/
Let’s hand Gale Brewer her walking papers. She’s had her chance and failed us.
Her website has zero substance, though. I don’t see anything even vaguely resembling concrete policy.
There are no moderate Republicans.
Yes, there are moderate Republicans, just as there are (still) sane and not 100% woke Democrats.
Most Republicans are not moderates. Most Democrats are not WOKE.
Please give the polarizing comments a rest. We obviously need a change. What we have is not working.
And this kind of thinking – which is not true – is exactly why the city is in the mess it is in.
Here we go… the demonizing of half of the country’s population
I just saw her site. She sounds great. We have to get Brewer out. Her complacency is ruining the UWS.
We can’t let it get worse. We will end up becoming slaves to these people who will keep us locked up in our homes for fear of becoming victims. ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. TIME TO FIGHT BACK. We can’t do it physically, but we can with our votes.
https://www.dianeforny.com
Exactly what part of her bio was “great?” She’s a mother and an artist with ZERO involvement in government and/or law, acc to the bio. She has no credentials – or interests except in arts, motherhood, and a desire for safety. A candidate absolutely MUST know how to navigate political waters. Her bio indicates zero public service or engagement or record of getting things done for the city/neighborhood. I bet she’s not even aware of what the position can legally do and not-do. Why not vote for someone who at least has a bona fide clue? (imo)
What are the actionable steps an elected official can take? Are they taken in the East Side, where these issues are less virulent? I’m interested in learning about specific paths to ameliorating these types of crimes, not finger-pointing or bitterness.
“I’m interested in learning about specific paths to ameliorating these types of crimes, not finger-pointing or bitterness.”
Best start then is to skip the Comments; lots of finger poimting and bitterness.
This is but another terrible story of the increasing crime and violence in our city that has become just another “day in the life.” My heart goes out to the newsstand owner who became another crime victim. And debating about the cause/effect is pointless without action on all our parts in the voting booth …elections clearly have consequences.
We all say it’s a problem but very few of us vote or research local candidates (including judges, who are a big part of the problem) before voting. We have a DA and uber liberal judges who want to implement their own versions of law…we need to revert the raise the age and try these people as adults and actually prosecute crimes…and most importantly we need to stop voting for liberal candidates who lack common sense. NYPD does its job over and over, but it’s all for nothing thanks to Alvin Bragg and liberal local judges. We all had a chance to curb this and vote for Weinstein for DA, but we blew it!
An odd age range. 20 as the upper limit and not 21? Does being 21 change the charge if the criminal gets caught? Will the criminal be punished vs allowed to enroll in some special tax payer funded after school program for disadvantaged youth? Does it affect the criminal’s ability to have his file sealed so that it doesn’t impact this criminal’s ability to secure housing?
It’s heartbreaking to read this; the newsstand operators are hardly themselves well-off and they work long hours under lousy conditions. So many have closed and now I realize that the threat of theft must be part of the equation. And yes, the lack of jail, fines, or other punishments–and the defund the police movement– of course has caused all of this. And terrible parenting and enabling liberals…..
This is all very disturbing. Where are the politicians besides taking photos at events. I witnessed an attempted stealing last evening at one of the newsstands not too far from this one. One of the individuals who attempted to grab items saw me watching him and just left. Could be the same group of juvenile offenders.
Well, what’s our “Mayor”’s plan? He’s practically nonexistent on speaking out against crime and doesn’t seem to be doing much. Curtis Sliwa wouldn’t stand for this BS.
Something is wrong with our math education. So many of these kids don’t seem to know how to divide. $650 divided by 5 kids is $130 each. That’s a day and a half of paid work (including taxes) at minimum wage of $15/hour. $130 can’t get you the latest shoes or some bling, and it won’t get you a nice date with their version of a cute girl. Never mind an iPhone. One of them will get arrested from the video and rat out his friends, then they’ll all have a record (which they probably do already) which means they’ll never be able to get a good job. People used to teach kids this stuff. What happened?
The comment section on these articles have become so predictable and toxic.
Well…blaming liberal thought for this IS a Right-Wing talking point.
OMG! Who created this mess??? The extreme left! We need to get back to a time when being a Democrat didn’t mean you were an extremist and being a Republican didn’t mean you were a gun toting Fascist. There was a time when there was communication across the aisle. When both parties were so moderate that the line was blurry between them. You have to call this what it is. We’ve over compensated to the liberal side, and we are seeing the result. You may not agree with a more conservative ideal, but you can’t argue that we have to move back in that direction.
It’s okay. You can want criminals behind bars and not want to ban abortion or stop someone from expressing the gender they identify with. You can want to put the bad guys away. Don’t worry, it doesn’t make you a Trump lover.
This repeated accusation of liberal thought as responsible for “Five Youths Rob Newsstand on Broadway and 77th Street” is malarky.
Why don’t you focus on “Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477)” rather than turning this into an election campaign?
A bunch of young people who looked like that, plus a few girls, were loitering, making out, and making lots of noise on a West 70s brownstone stoop on Friday early evening. They weren’t residents or guests. They were just taking over and blocking the stoop for fun. They were rude and aggressive to the resident who asked them to leave, and then simply transferred their activities to the next building over.
We were so much better off with the broken windows policy. There are usually signs before crime escalates. Ignore them at your peril.
You would arrest kids for hanging out on a stoop?
Does anyone here read a regular newspaper anymore, either online or in print? I have been complaining as loud as anyone here about the current situation. I want much more punishment for all of these crimes.
The latest state budget includes a section giving judges more discretion to enforce stricter bail. It is far from a complete solution but it is a step in the right direction. Hochul should be commended for recognizing the problem and she had to give up on some of her other priorities to push this through. Once it is finalized perhaps WSR could write an article about it. NYT covered it today.
I witnessed a terrifying scene on the downtown # 1 train three days ago. First, a howling young woman came in from the car behind mine. She screamed all the way to the door of the next car. Then a pack of laughing, screaming boys appeared from the car behind mine, in pursuit of the woman. One said “She in there?” and they noisily and frighteningly pursued her, but not before terrorizing the people in my car with their violent movements and loud cursing and laughing. When I gratefully got off at my stop, I was nearly run down by another boy, part of the gang, riding a child-size bicycle at lightening speed. There was nothing I could do. I feared for my life (and others).What can one DO in such a situation???
Please – if you see a women being chased by a gang – CALL 911.
I don’t know what’s more upsetting, news of crimes like these or the torrent of comments on any article concerning crime, with a bunch of Archie Bunkers shooting off pleas to vote Republican and for cops to be merciless to any actual or suspected criminals. It’s so easy to be tough behind a screen, but are you actually doing anything?
If pleas to vote Republican are more upsetting to you than rampant crime, it is a major part of the problem.
As I was trying to mention earlier, I was bracing myself for a barrage of name-calling like we saw yesterday – “racist, troll, uneducated “, now Archie Bunkers, by those who took voting Dem to the next, cult-like level.
Nobody seems to be doing the obvious, which is dialing 911 when an clear crime is happening in front of their eyes. But hey, it’s just a newsstand operator right? Not one of us?
Ill-motivated Bragg and other unqualified Dems got elected because of hideous DC GOP actions. It’s the same in many other places,. Voters base bad local choices on DC horrors.
Too bad. The newsstands are on the way out even without crime. I guess this is because people don’t read newspapers or magazines much. A lot of the newsstands on the street and in the subway are permanently closed.
The focus needs to be on providing free opportunities for young men and women to express their talents, have fun and learn marketable skills from the time they are very young. I’m aware this is complicated and the issues stem from home and on… and on… But a large part of this issue is that the young have too much time on their hands with limited outlets to explore their interests/talents. We need to develop secure funding, space, staff to develop viable programs/recreational centers that provide children/teens/young adults with free options to explore music, dance, arts/crafts, politics, law, sports, writing, etc. from the time they are young. No disparities. Welcome to all and free. These programs need to be developed such that they are actually alluring to children/teens and they need to overseen by trained individuals who enjoy being around the young. I’m aware this may not be easy to actually pull off for many reasons but I’m stunned that this is not done. I”m sure it would not be impossible to secure grant money to pull this off as well as identify the right people. As a community, we need to make far more progress to set the young on the right track long before they get to the point of committing crimes.
Don’t we already have a place with free opportunities called school….where the trained individuals, are teachers, counselors, and advisors? The majority of the children I know went to public school and city colleges. They weren’t born privileged. I think the focus needs to be on the parents here. Where are they? Aren’t they part of the community?
I beleive that native NYer is referring to Community Centers.
I attended the community center in the neighborhood that I grew up in (and may still have that pottery I made then).
Later, I got a lot out of my volunteering there as a young person in his early twenties.
Yes, there are community centers, skill centers, and summer programs and college prep courses, available for everyone. But if a parent isn’t teaching basic values or making sure their kids are in school, then how are the teachers and advisors going to point them in the right direction?
I’ve given up on schools and parents. In an ideal world, yes, these are the obvious solutions. But the school system has been broken beyond repair for as long as I can remember and family life is a mess. There are no easy solutions for improvement of either. This is the reason we need to identify other options such as community programs to offset these huge deficits.
would facial recognition technology be an effective deterrent?
New York State Senator, Brad Hoylman-Sigal is holding a Town Hall meeting on May 7th at AMONH from 1pm – 4pm. Looking at his website. He’s accomplished quite a bit, especially for the environment and LGBTQ community. Now . . . what about addressing crime and safety? I hope many attend and let their voices be heard. We can fire him too.