NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – The NYPD on Tuesday spoke to the recent wave of crimes in Central Park, saying the police department has increased resources to the park and just busted a Bronx man in a sexually motivated robbery of a woman last week.
NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey cut to the chase at a news conference: "We have an uptick in crime in Central Park. This year, we're seeing an increase in robberies."
According to the chief, there have been 18 robberies in the park so far this year, compared to the same time last year. There have also been 12 grand larcenies this year, versus eight by this time last year.
Many of the robberies have been in the evening hours and involved thieves stealing electronics, either by grabbing them or taking them by force or threats. Robberies were reported last Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
Assistant Chief Ruel Stephenson, the borough commander of Manhattan North, said the department had "increased significantly" the number of cops patrolling inside and around the park. It has also added more cameras and deployed more auxiliary officers on weekends, as the Central Park Conservancy also adds resources.
"On any given day, a parkgoer will see additional police officers inside the park," Stephenson said. "We're using all resources available in the NYPD to address this."
NYPD Assistant Chief Jason Savino, of the Detectives Bureau, said police are investigating several robbery patterns. Among them is a sexually motivated robbery probe that led Tuesday morning to Kevin Taylor, a 35-year-old Bronx man. He was being questioned and was set to be arrested and charged.
Police believe he's the man who attacked a 28-year-old woman woman in the park last Thursday near West 96th Street and West Drive. "This bad guy approached a female," Savino said, "grabbed her by the arm and said essentially, 'I'm going to take sex, I'm going to take money and I'm going to take your phone.'"
The man has nine prior arrests and is on parole until 2028, Savino said.
In another case, three males—wielding a firearm with a laser attached to it—robbed a 42-year-old tourist of his two phones at East Drive and East 59th Street last Friday morning. The thieves fled on scooters the Lake.
The NYPD believes the trio may be linked to nine robberies in Queens and several in Manhattan, including the robbery of the tourist.
"What we're seeing is robbery sprees," Savino said. "With the accessibility of all the scooters right now, we're seeing them kind of empowered by that and then doing additional robberies."
Officials credited the public for the quick arrest Monday morning of a man who grabbed a female tourist's phone and chucked it into the Pond, saying a witness quickly called 911 to report the crime.