Trash fires spread

A garbage fire inside the Majestic apartment building at 3660 Waldo Ave. around midnight on Sept. 19 caused three smoke-inhalation-related injuries and forced the evacuation of the building.

The incident followed at least one other recent fire in the area — a garbage blaze that damaged a SUV in front of 3470 Cannon Place on Sept. 15.  Police have not announced a connection between the two blazes. 

Fire officials are investigating the incident at the Majestic.

2. Good Samaritan robbed

Two suspects robbed a teenager on Sept. 21 after he gave them directions.

The two men approached the teen at the corner of Orloff and Van Cortlandt avenues, asking the victim if he spoke Spanish before requesting directions to Sedgwick Avenue. After the victim provided the directions and turned to walk away, one of the suspects grabbed him around the throat while the other searched his pockets. 

The thieves stole an iPhone worth about $600.

The victim was examined in hospital but released after physicians found no injuries.
Police described one suspect as a 5-foot-10-inch, 180-pound Hispanic male about age 29. The other was described as a light skinned Hispanic male about age 30. 

The case is still open to detectives.

3. Violent altercation

Police say a 39-year-old man cut another male on the thumb with a razor, causing a laceration and bleeding on the afternoon of Sept. 18 at 2855 Claflin Ave. 

The suspect allegedly knocked on his mother’s window saying he had a pistol.  When a 20-year-old man came outside, the suspect attacked him with a razor and fled. 

Responding officers caught the suspect.

The victim refused medical attention.

The 39-year-old suspect was charged with assault

4. Cleaned out

A 27-year-old woman lost thousands of dollars in possessions in a burglary around 10:30 a.m. on Sept. 20. 

A witness reported seeing the suspect exit the window of the victim’s home at the corner of West 236 Street and the Henry Hudson Parkway and climbing into the front passenger side of a black Nissan Maxima, which then sped onto the highway.

The suspect stole about $3,000 in cash, clothing totaling $8,000, a $2,000 Apple computer, a Bose sound system estimated at $3,500, two Samsung TVs worth $1,800 total, an A/C unit valued at $500 and video game systems worth $950.

The witness said the suspect was about 20 years old, 5-foot-10 and 165 pounds and dressed in a blue baseball hat and blue jogging suit.

The case is open to detectives.

5. Grand theft auto

5. A 50-year-old man found his 1999 Volkswagen Jetta missing from its parking spot at 2685 University Ave. on the afternoon of Sept. 18. 

After parking his vehicle before 10 a.m., the man returned to move his car for street cleaning at 2 p.m. However, when he arrived his vehicle was gone. 

The victim estimated the value of his car at $2,000.

There was no record of any towing, and no broken glass at the parking spot. 

While the car has not been recovered, police have closed the case. 

Items in Police Beat are based on reports of crimes and arrests. Those arrested are not guilty unless a court convicts them. Police Beat does not include every crime in our coverage area.