The 106th Precinct is actively pursuing the breaking in of parked cars throughout southern Queens communities like Ozone Park as the summer winds down. File Photo
A Howard Beach resident was spotted posting phony flyers onto parked cars’ windshields in order to scope out the vehicles’ insides, the 106th Precinct said.
Charles Marino, 34, was arrested Friday morning when plain clothes officers caught him trying to break into multiple cars in the Centreville area of Ozone Park, officers said. Authorities accused the man of eyeing the insides of parked cars while placing flyers on their windshields in an effort to blend into the community.
If he saw something he liked, the man would head to his own burglary toolkit inside of his car to gain access to victims’ vehicles, the precinct said. Marino, who lives at 160th Avenue and 91st Street, also wore gloves in order to prevent fingerprints from surfacing, police said.
Car break-ins have been of higher priority throughout the 106th Precinct over recent months as officers made several key arrests to stop the trend. Last week, 106th Precinct Deputy Inspector Jeffrey Schiff applauded his top cops for arresting 27-year-old Richard Hobbs, who allegedly stole an unattended running vehicle last week before being spotted by plain clothes cops.
In a letter to the community, Schiff said Hobbs allegedly stole two other unattended cars, including one on Sunday night near 156th Avenue and Cross Bay Boulevard and another two weeks ago near the Burger King in South Ozone Park.
Officers were also still on the hunt for 34-year-old Joseph Quick of Howard Beach, who authorities pegged as Hobbs’ partner and was previously picked up in the 75th Precinct earlier this month for the alleged attempted burglary of a private house.
The most recent 106th Precinct crime statistics through Aug. 24 showed both grand larcenies and grand larceny autos to be slightly higher than this time last year, with a 66 percent and 10 percent rise respectively. They were the top-two crimes to see an increase compared to 2013’s numbers, with the latter tied with felony assaults, which also showed a 10 percent increase.
By The Forum staff
