Michelle Kim

Burglar Breaks Into Dozens of Homes in Queens Neighborhood Using Fire Escape: NYPD

Police are looking for a burglar who's been breaking into dozens of homes in Queens using a fire escape and getting away with as much as thousands of dollars in cash, jewelry and other valuables each time. 

Police say the 31 breaks-ins stretch back to December, all within a few blocks of each other in Ridgewood. 

In nearly all the cases, the man gets into the home using a fire ecape, and in several instances, he's taken several thousand dollars in cash. He's also gotten away with mementos, personal documents, electronics, jewelry and collectibles. 

Mostly, the residents returned to find their homes ransacked but in a few cases, they've encountered the burglar or watched him try to get in, police say. An 8-year-old girl and a 17-year-old girl at a home near Onderdonk and 69th avenues actually watched the man try to get into their home using a window the evening of Friday, March 3. They fled and called police. 

On the evening of Monday, Feb. 13, a 23-year-old woman awoke to find the man entering her bedroom with a flashlight, according to police. She screamed, scaring off the burglar. Police discovered the suspect had gotten into the home near Woodbine Street and St. Nicholas Avenue by breaking off the deadbolt lock. 

In at least two cases, residents were returning from a vacation when they found their homes burglarized, police say. 

The rash of brazen burglaries have neighbors terrified. 

"He actually hit our neighbors across the hall and then two days later, the building next to us," said Jessica Imhoff. "Both third-floor apartments. So we're next." 

Imhoff said she spoke with police, who told her they have undercover officers patrolling the neighborhood and were even on her building's roof Wednesday. But she's so frightened she and her roommate have started apartment-hunting. 

Another neighbor says their building's superintendent is so worried, he broke fire code and screwed his window shut to keep the potential burglar out. 

The burglaries or attempted burglaries being linked to the man include: 

  • Friday, Dec. 30, near Grove Street and Fairview Avenue
  • Monday, Jan. 9, near Menahan Street and Seneca Avenue
  • Monday, Jan. 9, near Grove Street and Woodward Avenue
  • Thursday, Jan. 12, near Linden Street and Cypress Avenue
  • Monday, Jan. 16, near Onderdonk Avenue and 69th Avenue
  • Thursday, Jan. 19, near Madison Street and 64th Street
  • Thursday, Jan. 23, near Madison Street and 64th Street
  • Friday, Jan. 27, near Gates Avenue and St. Nicholas Avenue
  • Friday, Jan. 27, near Cypress Avenue and Madison Street
  • Thursday, Feb. 2, near Seneca Avenue and Menahan Street
  • Wednesday, Feb. 8, near Grove Street and Woodward Avenue
  • Wednesday, Feb. 8, near Cypress Avenue and Harman Street
  • Monday, Feb. 13, at two different apartments in a building near Woodbine Street and St. Nicholas Avenue
  • Monday, Feb. 13, near Harman Street and Seneca Avenue 
  • Wednesday, Feb. 22, near Cypress Avenue and Menahan Street
  • Thursday, Feb. 23, near Seneca Avenue and Weirfield Street
  • Thursday, Feb. 23, near Palmetto Street and Cypress Avenue
  • Thursday, Feb. 23, near Seneca Avenue and Bleecker Street
  • Saturday, Feb. 25, at an unidentified location
  • Monday, Feb. 27, near 71st Avenue and 60th Street
  • Monday, Feb. 27, at an unidentified location
  • Wednesday, March 1, near Harman Street and Seneca avenue
  • Thursday, March 2, near 71st Avenue and 60th Street
  • Friday, March 3, near Onderdonk Avenue and 69th Avenue
  • Friday, March 3, near Cypress Avenue and Harman Street
  • Wednesday, March 8, near Cypress Avenue and Harman Street
  • Wednesday, March 8, near Madison Street and Woodward Avenue
  • Friday, March 10, near Himrod Street and Cypress Avenue
  • Monday, March 13, at two different apartments in a building near Himrod Street and Cypress Avenue

Anyone with information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS. 

Contact Us