What to Know
- More than a half-dozen suspects in a cellphone robbery pattern targeting dozens of victims in recent months have been arrested, according to the NYPD, with the ringleader of the operation still on the run
- A Bronx apartment that allegedly served as headquarters for the wide-ranging cellphone robbery crew was raided early Monday. The scheme was based around a network of thieves using mopeds in hold-ups that occurred in four of the five boroughs, police said.
- Monday's developments come as Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg prepares to bring the case of migrants allegedly attacking NYPD officers in Times Square to a grand jury. The officers were OK, but the caught-on-camera melee prompted widespread condemnation.
More than a half-dozen suspects in a cellphone robbery pattern targeting dozens of victims in recent months have been arrested, according to the NYPD, with the ringleader of the operation still on the run.
A Bronx apartment that allegedly served as headquarters for the wide-ranging cellphone robbery crew was raided early Monday. The scheme was based around a network of thieves using mopeds in hold-ups that occurred in four of the five boroughs, police said. Only Staten Island has been without cases.
Police said they believe they can link one crew to more than 60 robberies across the city. Police searched a building at 2790 Bronx Park East and found stolen goods including cell phones, some of which the suspects tried to hide and toss out windows as police entered the building, the NYPD said.
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Surveillance video showed the thieves at work, with many of the targets being women walking alone getting robbed of cellphones, purses and shopping bags.
Three people were arrested Monday morning in addition to numerous others who were charged in recent weeks, including Yan Jiminez, Anthony Ramos, Richard Saledo, Beike Jiminez, Maria Manaura and Cleyber Andrade. Many of the alleged thieves are believed to be migrants living in city shelters, according to city investigators, and most of whom are originally from South America.
Some of the robbery crew charged last month were released without bail including Jiminez, Saledo, and Ramos. Police said catching up with the thieves was complicated, with many of them having been arrested before only to be released. Adding to that difficulty, some of the suspects were described as so-called "ghost criminals," which NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban said meant they had "no phone, no social media" and officials couldn't even be sure of their names or dates of birth.
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The suspects were allegedly part of the robbery teams that would snatch cell phones or rob victims, and then bring the stolen goods back to the Bronx building which served as a stash house, the NYPD said. The suspects would get their marching orders via social media from supposed ringleader Victor Parra, who would pay the migrants for the items they swiped.
Police said Parra, who is originally from Venezuela, remains on the run. Among those arrested in the overnight Bronx raid include the technician who helps Parra drain the victims' bank accounts through their phones, according to investigators.
Police said they are looking for more people connected to the case, focused on making at least seven more arrests. Investigators added that some of the stolen phones have been tracked to other U.S. cities like Miami and Houston, while others have made it all the to Colombia, where they are wiped clean so they can be used again.
Attorney information for the suspects arrested was not immediately known.
In the city's latest crime statistics released Monday, overall crime across the city continued to decline in January, but there was a small increase in robberies. Compared to the first month of 2023, there were substantial drops in murder, rape, burglary, and felony assault, NYPD's record showed. Robberies went up from 1,345 to 1,417, or a 5.4% increase.
Mayor Eric Adams said it's a tiny portion of the roughly 170,000 or so migrants who have relocated to New York that are allegedly tied to the crimes, but he still vowed to root out the bad apples.
"Those who commit crimes will be treated like anyone else," Adams said.
The NYPD's latest focus on petty crimes come as Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg prepares to bring the case of migrants allegedly attacking NYPD officers in Times Square to a grand jury. The officers were OK, but the caught-on-camera melee prompted widespread condemnation.
The incident was caught on video showing as many as 14 people hitting and kicking two police officers in front of a migrant shelter as the officers tried to arrest a man for disorderly conduct. Four of the suspects arrested and charged in that case were released with no bail after court appearances in Manhattan.
Sources said four defendants have since traveled by bus to California using aliases, although their release did not require them to stay in New York City. The men are due back in court on March 4.
A fifth suspect Yohenry Brito, 24, was later arrested in the alleged attack and was ordered held on Rikers on $50,000 bail.
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has faced criticism over his handling of the assault case including from top NYPD officials who asked why migrants with few ties to the community would be released without bail.
”You want to know why our cops are getting assaulted? There are no consequences," NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell said last week.
Following the attack on the police officers, Bragg held a news conference to condemn the actions of the suspects but said prosecutors moved cautiously on bail as they worked to charge the right suspects with the right crimes.
“We make decisions based on the evidence we have before us at the time,” Bragg said.
The debate over bail for migrants accused of felonies comes amid the broader debate over the border crisis and how New York City has seen more than 150,000 migrants enter the city – many in need of housing and assistance.
NYPD Assistant Commissioner Kaz Daughtry posted a statement on social media after Monday’s Bronx arrests that “…most migrants come to NYC in search of a better life. Sadly some come to commit crimes.”
Gov. Kathy Hochul has called for the migrants involved in the assault on the officers to be deported. However, federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials say New York does not share information with them about migrants accused or convicted of crimes and at what times they appear in court.
