Woman Riding Bike Home from Gym Dragged Inside Van, Tied Up, Beaten: Cops

Police say the suspects kept asking about money

A 52-year-old woman riding her bike home from a Queens gym over the weekend was knocked off her cycle by a minivan and then dragged into the vehicle by two men who bound, blindfolded and beat her while demanding hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, law enforcement sources said.

The two suspects, one of whom is depicted in the above sketch, told the woman they knew she had money in her house and demanded $400,000 while beating her in the van, those sources said. They threatened to kill her if she didn't give them the money, and tossed her out of the van after about 15 minutes.

The victim, who told police she owns Central Car Service in Jackson Heights, told authorities one of the suspects was arguing on the phone with a woman during the attack. 
 
One law enforcement official says it appears the victim was targeted. She was the victim of a burglary last year. In that case, $500,000 was stolen from her penthouse apartment on Buell Street in Astoria. An individual was arrested, but it appears the charges were dropped or the case wasn't prosecuted.

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 800-577-TIPS.
Contact Us