Crime Watch

BY JERRY DANZIG

Paying DisrespectAn 86-year-old Columbus Avenue woman received a phone call from the Chase Bank debit card fraud department informing her of suspicious activities in the joint account she had shared with her recently deceased husband. Some withdrawals had apparently been made in Holland, from where family members had come following her husband’s death, though she had not given the bank any traveling notice, police said. Other withdrawals were also made in New York City. In all, 10 unauthorized withdrawals totalling $5,411 were made, police said The woman’s husband had died six days prior to the first illegal transaction. The woman had not realized the loss of the card until $2,100 was withdrawn in New York City and $2772.40 in Holland. Bank officials contacted her on Dec. 15.

Grinch PinchOne thief showed an alarming lack of holiday spirit. At 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 20, a 28-year-old woman was selling Christmas trees in front of 2407 Broadway, when she returned to the tent where the money drawer was kept and discovered that an envelope containing $3,500 had been removed from a drawer in a nearby tent by an unknown perpetrator. The woman told police she been busy with sales and had no idea who took the envelope.

Infernal RevenueYet another fraud was perpetrated under the name of the Internal Revenue Service. A 73-year-old woman living at West 108th Street received a phone call from someone claiming to be Jack Smith from the IRS on Dec. 11, police said. Jack Smith told the woman that she owed $95,000 to the service, but that she could settle her purported tax debt for $3,900 if she paid immediately. The perpetrator then instructed the woman to deposit the money in a specified Wells Fargo account and send an e-mail showing the proof of deposit, or he would send a man to her residence. He also said to her, “Don’t tell no one about this!” She had no further contact with the perpetrator after she made the deposit.

Joyless RidePolice shut down a young car thief. At 8:30 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 12, a 61-year-old woman parked her car in front of 201 West 101st St. When she returned the following Monday morning, her 1999 Toyota Camry was missing. The woman told police that she had left the car locked with an extra key in the glovebox. There was no sign of broken glass at the parking spot. Surveillance video later showed the car inbound on the Third Avenue Bridge on that Monday evening, with an unknown driver behind the wheel. The vehicle was later recovered, and the suspect, Shemer Perez, age 19, was charged with grand larceny auto.

Mobile and VileOne ID thief was apparently an avid cell phone user. At 3 p.m. on Dec. 13, a 39-year-old woman living at on West 95th Street got a letter from Sunrise Credit Services regarding charges on an AT&T mobile account in the amount of $3,430. The woman said she had not opened the account and had no idea where the account had been opened. She also contacted the TransUnion credit bureau, which informed her of charges on an additional account opened at Sprint totaling $4,040. The woman said both accounts had been opened without her permission. The total amount charged came to $7,470.