Robberies are up city-wide. For the week that ended this past Sunday, they're up 29% over 2009. For the twenty-eight-day period that ended that day, they're up 18.8%. Police attribute the robberies to teens and pre-teens who are stealing cell phones and other personal electronic devices.
This sharp increase in robberies led to a meeting today of the highest ranking uniformed officer and the Chief of Operations with the heads of the NYPD's eight borough commands, and the detective, housing, and transit borough chiefs.
At last night's meeting of the Albemarle Neighborhood Association, Detective Vincent Galeno of the 66th Precinct's Community Affairs division and Sgt. Mike Andreano of the precinct's Conditions Unit* heard residents enumerate one crime--or attempted crime--after another:
- break-ins into homes,
- cars broken into,
- gang-related activity,
- fights between groups of teenagers,
- a violent homeless man who lives in the Church Avenue subway station,
- hooky parties (where children who are supposed to be in school are drinking and smoking in homes where no adults are present),
- noise,
- prostitution, and
- loitering.
Detective Galeno and Sergeant Andreano were aware of most of the problems that residents described. The precinct is monitoring them in unmarked patrol cars and vans.
In addition, the precinct uses "bait vans" that entice criminals with valuable items placed in the vans that are visible from the outside. When the vans are broken into, the criminal's activities are recorded.
The co-president of P.S. 230's PTA asked if the precinct could send someone to the school to speak to students about gangs, and Detective Galeno and Sergeant Andreano said that it will be arranged.
A note about loitering: the police can't arrest people who are loitering for purposes that aren't constitutionally prohibited: begging (unless they're being aggressive), asking another person to engage in sexual activity (engaging in sexual activity in a public place, however, is illegal), and loitering in a transportation facility and not being able to give a satisfactory explanation of why they're there.
As of a week ago, an NYPD officer is permanently stationed at the intersection of Church and McDonald avenues. He rides a scooter, and his name is Officer Shum. Hopefully, his presence will have a positive effect on the number of crimes affecting our neighborhood.
Please notify us of any crimes you see or hear about. Let's work together to improve the area. Our e-mail address is karmabrooklyn@gmail.com.
* The Conditions Unit responds to persistent conditions, such as gang activity, graffiti, noisy bar patrons, public drinking, unruly teenagers, drug sales, prostitution, and quality-of-life issues in general.