A black gang of thieves has been breaking into small businesses in New York City – pulling ATMs off the ground with vans and tow chains or taking them out of stores by hand, video shows.
At least 49 businesses have been robbed so far in the massacre, according to the United Bodegas of America (UBA) trade group, which is offering a $5,000 bounty on looters. Bodega is often used as the name of a small grocery store or grocery store in town.
The NYPD said investigators believe the thieves are a group of three who used stolen vehicles to commit the crime, which has been reported in at least 25 of the city's 78 precincts.
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Two thieves steal an ATM from a small business in New York City. The NYPD is searching for three suspects in connection with nearly 49 similar burglaries. (NYPD)
Radhames Rodriguez, the group's president, told Fox News Digital that authorities must return to fully prosecuting low-level crimes and criticized the NYPD's recently announced policy, which prohibits police from pursuing suspects in non-violent and low-level crimes.
“While we understand the need for balance in law enforcement, limiting pursuits to only suspects involved in violent crimes sends a dangerous message to criminals who commit low-level crimes,” he told Fox News Digital. “These so-called 'petty crimes' are often the center of serious crime, creating a sense of lawlessness and impunity.”
Although the city has taken steps to combat the growing crime, business owners see the new speeding policy as a step backwards.
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Thieves tore through a wall on the side of a New York City store to steal an ATM from inside. The NYPD is looking for three suspects in 49 similar cases, including stolen vehicles. (UBA)
“Accountability must exist at all levels of crime,” said Fernando Mateo, UBA spokesperson, to Fox News Digital. “Low-level crimes should not be considered small because they are on the rise. Today there is shoplifting, tomorrow there is an armed robber.”
New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said on Wednesday that the new guidelines for tracking vehicles will reduce the risk of collateral damage.
According to the NYPD, 25% of car chases by 2024 will result in a collision, property damage or injury. Two-thirds of them started with stops where the suspect fled. The police are no longer allowed to follow under these circumstances.
The new laws limit officers to only pursue serious crimes – felonies and violent crimes.
“The NYPD's law enforcement efforts must not put the public or police officers at unnecessary risk, and pursuing violations and low-level crimes can be dangerous and unnecessary,” Tisch said in a statement. “Today's advanced police tools make it possible to catch criminals more safely and efficiently than ever before, making many jobs unnecessary.”
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New York City Mayor Eric Adams and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch held a press conference on Dec. 19, 2024 in New York City. (Stephanie Keith/Getty Images)
ATM thieves are still rampant.
Joseph Giacalone, a former NYPD sergeant and professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said the new guidelines don't represent a major change, however.
“The goal has always been the same – it's up to the travel manager to clear any vehicle tracking based on certain factors. [as] written in the surveillance guide,” he told Fox News Digital. “He's putting it there to tell everyone – it was already there, but to emphasize it at the end, the New York City Council will be fully operational in Chicago and prevent all pursuit, including. foot pursuit. It's only a matter of time.”
Even as the pendulum appears to have begun to swing back in the direction of serious crime across the US, he warned that some green city leaders are not there yet.
An NYPD car is seen in Times Square in New York City on Oct. 24, 2022. (Photo by Beata Zawrzel/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
“The messaging may have changed with the polls about how people feel about what they want the police to do in the United States, but the cities are in strong hands and the police are protecting the police,” he said.
While the announcement about its pursuit policy was criticized, the NYPD made another big change this week – increasing patrols on the subways at night days after the chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority told citizens that transportation crime is on their heads.
“The NYPD will introduce a significant program to put two officers on night trains in phases,” the department said Thursday. “The first phase will officially start on Monday with the first 100 officers. Additional phases will be launched in the coming weeks as the work is expected to be completed by the end of the month.”
The police released a surveillance video of the two suspects removing the ATM from the store. UBA also shared a video showing them tearing through a wall with a chain attached to the back of a van before stealing another.
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Police are asking for the public's help in finding the thieves.
“It was reported to the police that between Thursday, September 19, 2024, and Thursday, December 26, 2024, there were 49 incidents involving three unknown individuals who removed vehicles and license plates,” an NYPD spokesperson told Fox News. Digital. “These people then used these stolen vehicles to go to commercial areas where they forcibly entered and took out ATMs and other goods. They fled the areas in different vehicles.”
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