104th Community Council Vice-President Abraham Markowitz, left; Det. Thomas Bell, community affairs officer; Capt. Christopher Manson, commanding officer; and Community Affairs Officer Otoniel Jimenez meet with the media last week to talk about a variety of issues in the precinct. Crime Prevention Officer Brenda Hyatt, who is not pictured, also attended the meeting. Anna Gustafson/The Forum Newsgroup
Residents in mid-Queens should be on the lookout for criminals who snatch purses or other goods left by drivers – particularly women – running into a gas station, Capt. Christopher Manson, commanding officer of the 104th Precinct, said in a wide-ranging interview last week that covered everything from scams plaguing much of the city to a gun-wielding passenger in a livery cab.
“This is a growing thing, and we encourage all people to lock your door,” Manson said in reference to thieves at gas stations. “The crime takes five seconds to happen. When you go to pay, they will slide up, open the door and take your pocketbook.”
Three of these incidents have occurred in the 104th, which covers Ridgewood, Glendale, Middle Village and Maspeth – though none have happened since June. All three occurred around the end of June near at a gas station at 80-07 Cypress Ave., across from Mount Carmel Cemetery.
On June 22 around 1:15 p.m. a suspect snagged an iPhone off the front seat of a car, and another person on June 24 around 5:30 p.m. swiped a bag from a vehicle – which turned out to be filled with “all baby stuff,” Manson said.
“They probably thought they were getting something more valuable than that,” he laughed.
At almost the same time – June 24 around 5:30 p.m. – a cell phone and wallet with $400 cash was stolen from another car.
The commanding officer also said scams have been a pervasive problem across the five boroughs – including in the 104th.
“We’ve seen an increase in scams, and we got hit again recently,” Manson said. “Citywide, scams are up.”
One of the most prevalent scams as of late has been from con artists who will call and say a relative of the person they are calling is in jail, often in a South American country. The scammer will then ask the individual to send money, often through Western Union.
Another scam frequently reported involves the criminal calling, saying they are from Con Edison and that the individual must pay a large sum of money or their lights will be shut off.
“If you have a utility saying you have to pay us right now, do not,” Manson said. “Ask what number they’re at, ask their name and then look the number and name up. Call Con Edison and say does so-and-so work for you.”
The “illegal immigrant scam,” as the police will often refer to it as, involves one or two people walking up to someone and telling them they won the lottery but that they cannot collect the money because they are undocumented.
“So they’ll ask that person to cash it, but they’ll say, ‘How do we know you won’t run off with our money – give us $15,000 and we’ll hold onto it until you come back.’”
Instead, the individual leaves with the bogus check and the others run off with the cash.
The world of policing is not without its – often many – ludicrous moments, and Manson told reporters that on Aug. 6 a livery driver pulled his car up to the precinct’s building, jumped out and said, “the guy in my backseat has a gun.”
Indeed – the gentleman, who the captain said was “passed out” in the back seat, had a semi-automatic sticking out of his waistband.
“We tried to talk to him, but he was so intoxicated he couldn’t even talk,” Manson said.
The individual – Abraham Vargas, 26 – was arrested.
Manson wrapped up the meeting by reporting that there has been a spike in truck accidents, which are up 43 percent over last year. The captain said he wasn’t sure what to attribute the increase to, though he stressed the 104th is focused on targeting any truck drivers who break the law.
“The truck accidents are not high speed accidents -t hey tend to back up and hit a car,” Manson said. “They’re low speed and hitting everything. We go after them for any violation, especially being off the truck routes.”
By Anna Gustafson
