Pounded for cash, phone

1. Police said at 7 p.m. on March 3, a black male described as 6-foot-2 and weighing 180 pounds dashed up behind a 19-year-old, grabbed him and began pounding welts into his face and nose. The victim fell to the ground at West 197th Street and Claflin Avenue, attempting to shield himself, but was kicked in the right side of his ribs.

The victim, still conscious, said he saw the assailant flee with one other black male on foot, taking $800 in cash and an iPhone 5S valued at $150 with him. He could only describe the assailant: black coat, black boots, black mask.

2. Rival shopping lists

Authorities said when a 70-year-old woman parked her gray 2013 Toyota Corolla outside the Pioneer Supermarket at 184 W. 231 St., she thought she would spend just a few minutes there to cross some items off her grocery list. When she returned to find her car, a thief had apparently crossed the gray 2013 Toyota Corolla valued at $17,000 off his own list.

Along with the vehicle, the 70-year-old lost boots valued at $149, groceries worth $60, a GPS system worth $99, a charger worth $30 and $50 cash.

Police canvassed the area, but uncovered no leads. Detectives hope to use video from closed-circuit television cameras at the supermarket and a bar in the neighborhood to identify the culprit.

3. Cash used as bait in con 

As an elderly woman walked past 311 W. 231st St. at 11:40 a.m. on March 3, she was approached by a young man and a young woman whom she described later as “very nice.”

The two engaged the 88-year-old in conversation and soon proposed a business deal. They showed her an envelope filled with money that they said amounted to $50,000. They would give her the envelope for the paltry sum of $9,000, they told her.

Sensing a good deal, the 88-year-old took off for the nearest branch of her bank, Banco Popular. She retrieved $9,000 and met the duo at another undisclosed location. The trade was made and the young people split. When the 88-year-old tallied her earnings, she found that her interlocutors had given her less than $9,000, although police did not specify the sum she received.

The case remains open to detectives, with police noting the incident was the latest in a recent series over the past several months.

4. Abrupt assault

On March 8 at 4:45 a.m., a 29-year-old man and a friend had just walked past the McDonald’s at 5765 Broadway when a car pulled up beside them, according to police.

A 5-foot-11 black male leapt out of the car and assaulted the 29-year-old’s friend. When the 29-year-old tried to stop the man, the assailant turned on him. At that point, a second man, Hispanic and slightly shorter at 5-foot-10, leapt from the car’s passenger side to join in the fray.

The 29-year-old suffered minor abrasions and contusions to his face. His friend sustained unspecified injuries. The only other detail he could give police was that the second assailant was wearing a green shirt.

5. Broadway Bridge jumper?

Residents of the Marble Hill Houses said they heard the roar of helicopter blades shortly after sirens began blaring near the Harlem River by West 225th Street and Broadway at 7:15 p.m. on Saturday.

Both NYPD and FDNY personnel responded to calls that a woman in the river was in critical condition. A rescue crew, some wearing scuba gear, “began jumping in the water” upon arriving at the site.

Firefighters said it was not immediately clear how the woman, who is now recovering in a hospital, had ended up in the water. But residents thought it was obvious.

“She jumped,” one person concluded. 

Items in Police Beat are based on reports of crimes and arrests. Those arrested are not guilty unless a court convicts them. Police Beat does not include every crime in our coverage area.