August 11, 2016 crime round-up

1. Robberies of the week

It is hard enough getting a cab in the city, but when a 34-year-old man turned down a $5 cab ride on Sunday, he wound up being chased and robbed.

The victim got off the subway at W. 242nd Street at 7 a.m. and hailed a cab to take him to W. 231st Street, according to police. When the cabbie insisted he pay $5 with a credit card before taking off, the victim decided to get out of the taxi, but was pursued by his would-be chauffeur.

Police say the driver chased the victim south to W. 240th Street and Corlear Avenue when he finally grabbed the man by his neck, threw him to the ground and took his phone, credit card and wallet.

In another incident on the same street corner, a 40-year-old man was attacked and robbed on his way home from Barcelona Bites on Aug. 2, police said. 

The victim was walking out of the bar at 3 a.m. when another man approached him and, according to the victim, said: “Who are you with,” before punching the victim repeatedly in the face, knocking him unconscious, police said. 

When the victim came to, he reported to police that his attacker had taken a $300 watch, a $600 cellphone and a $2,500 necklace.

Finally, a teen narrowly escaped being robbed on Aug. 3 on his way home.

The 14-year-old told police he was walking home at 5 p.m. in front of 2836 University Ave., when two unknown men started following him.

One of the alleged assailants told the teenager to empty his pockets and showed what seemed to be the handle of a firearm, police said. Instead, the teen bolted in the other direction and the two would be robbers did not pursue.

All three of these cases are open to investigation.

2. Phone scam 

Police say a 52-year-old man was bamboozled out of $2,500, when he received calls from scammers claiming to be the Internal Revenue Service.

Scammers told the victim he owed up to $50,000 in back taxes and would face jail time if he did not pay up. Police say they tricked the victim into buying $2,500 worth of iTunes gift cards and giving them the access codes to each of them.

Other residents in Kingsbridge told The Press about scammers trying to carry out the same scam on them. 

Police are investigating this incident as a grand larceny case.

3. And a car theft

Police say a tan 1996 Ford Econoline was stolen from in front of 3030 Johnson Avenue last week.

The victim, a 56-year-old man reported his car stolen on Aug. 1 at 8:45 p.m.

Another van – of the exact make, model and color – was stolen from in front of 2701 Sedgwick Ave. on July 27. 

While both cases are closed, police have an alarm out for the stolen vehicles.