Aug. 13, 2019 By Shane O’Brien
The police are looking for three suspects in connection to two robberies that occurred over the course of an hour in Flushing last month.
The two robberies took place at 11:30 p.m. on Sunday, July 14 and at 12:40 a.m. on Monday, July 15, approximately a mile and a half apart from one another.
The first robbery took place in front of 133-24 Blossom Ave. at around 11:30 p.m. on Sunday, July 14 when a 70-year-old man was knocked to the ground by two of the suspects who approached him from behind. The pair took $470, four credit cards and the victim’s cell phone before fleeing westbound on Blossom Avenue in a gray SUV.
Just over an hour later, two of the three men knocked another man to the ground and stole five credit cards and his cell phone in front of 42-28 149 Pl. The 55-year-old victim suffered a fractured left ankle as a result of the attack, while the men sped off southbound on 149 Place in a gray SUV.
Police said that one of the suspects attempted to purchase gasoline using one of the victim’s credit cards in a nearby Shell station at 1 a.m. When the transaction was declined, the suspect left the station at 141-54 Northern Blvd in a 2010-2013 gray Nissan Rogue SUV.
One of the suspects was caught on CCTV and is described as a bearded black man with his hair tied in a ponytail. Police have released a photo of the man and the vehicle he was driving.
His two accomplices are also described as black men.
Anyone with information in regard to this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or on Twitter @NYPDTips. All calls are strictly confidential.