A Campden Road resident reported Oct. 16 his BMW valued at $60,000 was stolen from his driveway. His security camera shows the car being driven away. He said there were two sets of keys and one was inside the car. An app located the car in Newark, New Jersey. Police entered it into the system as stolen and alerts were placed on it.
An Alfa Romeo reported stolen in the Mount Joy/Central Avenue area three days earlier was seen traveling southbound on S. Central Avenue by an officer patrolling in that area on Oct. 13. The car’s windows were dark tinted, which is a violation, and displayed temporary Arkansas license plates.
A traffic stop was conducted at S. Central Avenue and Old Army Road. The driver, Imani Martin, 27, had her grandmother, her son and two other passengers inside the car. Police reported that her license was suspended for insurance lapses, and she was unable to produce a valid insurance card or registration for the Alfa Romeo. The vehicle identification number came back to a car reported stolen from a Rockville County, Georgia, dealership, and that status was confirmed by the sheriff’s office.
Martin told police the car belongs to her boyfriend and he had all the paperwork for it, but she was able to produce a photocopied, unofficial document pertaining to the car’s purchase. That document was taken into evidence. Martin was arrested on scene and charged with criminal possession of stolen property and aggravated unlicensed operation of a vehicle. She was taken to police headquarters. She was released with a desk ticket summoning her to appear in court the following morning at 9:30 a.m.
Police contacted the dealership from which the car was stolen. They said the car was valued at $31,477. Arkansas police were contacted regarding the temporary tags.
Catalytic converters stolen
An E. Hartsdale Avenue woman reported Oct. 13 her catalytic converter was stolen from her Honda while it was parked on N. Central Avenue between Lawton and Lakeview two weeks earlier. She said when she started the car, it made a strange noise. Her mechanic advised her the converter was cut from the car. Police spoke with the mechanic who said to replace the converter would cost about $800.
A Colony Drive resident Oct. 17 reported his car was parked in its usual parking spot near his building, but when he started it that morning, it had an issue. He took the car to his mechanic who informed him the catalytic converter was missing. His replacement cost was given as $3,000.
On Oct. 13, a decorative stone pillar was reported damaged by a white Subaru with New York license plates outside a building on S. Central Avenue. The person who reported the damage showed police surveillance video of the car, which was registered to a White Plains man, as it backed into the pillar, causing damage and leaving the scene. Photos were taken and attached to the police report.
Police went to Rite Aid Oct. 13 on E. Hartsdale Avenue for a report of theft. The store manager said a man in a black hoodie holding a bag with wheels entered the store, stole about $400 worth of hair appliances, and then fled, heading toward the Hartsdale train station. The manager told police it was not the first time this particular suspect was suspected of stealing from the store.
A N. Central Avenue resident went to police headquarters Oct. 13 to report her wallet was stolen. She said on Sept. 29 she was at Trader Joe’s on N. Central Avenue, shopping in the salad section, when she felt her handbag, which was open and strapped to her body, move. She said she didn’t think much about it because the store was crowded and she thought she might have just been accidentally jostled, so she moved the bag to the front of her body. Twenty minutes later when she approached the register to pay for her purchases, she realized her wallet was gone from inside her handbag. She said she’d just used the wallet a short while earlier while she was shopping in ShopRite and she remembered returning her wallet to her handbag after paying for that purchase. Her wallet contained her driver’s license, two credit cards and a medical insurance card. Shortly after leaving Trader Joe’s, she received texts about three unauthorized purchases on the stolen cards. One purchase was for $500; two others for $600. The woman was unable to provide specific information to police regarding those charges that happened two weeks earlier because she said she was having trouble logging on to her accounts on her phone. Her cards have since been canceled. A report was made for documentation only.
A sick raccoon reported by a passerby was dispatched with two shots from a police officer’s handgun on Paret Lane Oct. 14. The body was double bagged and placed near the roadway; the highway department was notified for disposal.
A police officer on Penny Lane dispatched a single shot to euthanize a raccoon unable to move due to a substantial injury on its left hind leg Oct. 15. With the homeowner’s permission, the animal was double-bagged and placed in a garbage bin. The spent shell was recovered and brought back to police headquarters.
On Oct. 14, a Westminster Road resident reported her license plate was missing from her car. She said she noticed it missing only after she arrived at work. She was issued paperwork.
A Frost Lane woman reported identity theft Oct. 14. She told police she got a letter from a tax department that said she never claimed approximately $17,000 in unemployment benefits. The woman, 66, said she’s been retired for eight years and never filed for unemployment. The incident was documented for her records.
Suspicious but not illegal?
Police were on the lookout Oct. 15 for a green van traveling on N. Central Avenue. The van was suspected of being involved in the theft of cooking oil. Police stopped it on N. Central Avenue at North Washington Avenue. The driver and a passenger were identified. They told police they were going around to restaurants and collecting oil, if given permission by the restaurant to do so. The driver opened the rear of the van and showed police two large industrial containers filled with used cooking oil. Also observed was a pump inside the van. So far the incident is being investigated as suspicious.
Construction plate causes flat tire
Police took a report Oct. 16 from a man who said he was in the post office parking lot on N. Central Avenue when his front passenger side wheel made contact with a construction plate that was elevated and deflated his tire. He also said he thought his car might have sustained damage to its undercarriage. He said he was following up with the post office and the construction company, but just wanted to make a police report for documentation. The construction company has since placed a cone in front of the raised plate to prevent further incidents.
Towed to police impound
An officer responding to an alert of a possibly stolen license plate Oct. 16 pulled over to check on a parked, unoccupied Mazda on E. Hartsdale Avenue. The officer confirmed the car had the suspicious plate. A tow company was contacted to take the car to the police impound. The registered owner of the car was notified and upon arrival at the police station, she was told the plates on her car were stolen plates.
She told police plates were stolen in January along with a Volvo she had parked in New York City. She said the Volvo, with her plates, was totaled in a collision and towed to a yard in the Bronx. She went to that tow yard and recovered her plates from the totaled car and then registered a new Mazda with those same plates, despite the fact that the plates had been reported stolen.
According to police, a Yves Saint Laurent handbag, a Gucci wallet, a Ford key and a green work bag that belonged to the woman were found in the car. The woman was instructed to return to police headquarters the next day to collect her car.
On Oct. 16, an Ardsley Road man told police his overseas identity card had been missing for about three weeks. He told police he was in contact with a global service company who informed him he needed a police report to obtain a new card. He said he hasn’t suffered any identity issues or lost any money. A report was made for documentation.
Another theft at TJ Maxx?
Police went to TJ Maxx on N. Central Avenue Oct. 16 and spoke with the regional manager who reported a suspicious man carrying two luggage bags around the store and putting merchandise in them. Police arrived and watched him leave the store with the bags. He was detained and police said he allegedly stole about $374 worth of merchandise. Raheen Brown, 41, was placed under arrest, charged with petty larceny and brought back to police headquarters. He was processed, released and given a Nov. 9 court date.
Locks, tools taken from cemetery
On Oct. 17, a site supervisor for the Ferncliff Cemetery on Secor Road told police some gate locks and tools were missing from the site, valued at about $1,800. He said he knew the time when his crew locked up and left the cemetery three days earlier. Security cameras were not accessible. The supervisor said he would press charges if suspects were apprehended.
A Rogers Avenue resident Oct. 18 told police a person he thought was from his bank notified him of fraudulent activity on his account regarding a charge made at an Office Depot in Delray Beach, Florida. When the store texted him to inquire if the charge was valid, he replied “no” via text message, and then he got a call from someone claiming to be with the fraud department of his bank. The caller asked the man if he was using Zelle to make payments, and again he replied no. The caller stated the bank was placing $30,000 in his account to cover any losses incurred due to the unauthorized access.
The man continued to receive texts from the bank inquiring about his use of Zelle and requesting he sign into his account using a password they provided. At some point he became suspicious and called the phone number on the back of his bank card to reach the bank’s legitimate fraud department. The fake caller hung up and didn’t call back. While on the phone with the bank fraud department, the caller was advised $600 was removed from his account, but $30,000 was added in his name as a personal loan. The bank froze his account and advised him to make a police report while the bank conducts an investigation.
On Oct. 18, an E. Hartsdale Avenue resident reported he was going over his business accounts with his secretary when they noticed a check for about $1,500 was made out to a name they didn’t recognize. The account records showed the check was deposited by someone via a mobile app. The check was dated Oct. 7 and had the correct routing number and account number, but the check number was out of sequence. The man contacted his bank to make a claim and requested a police report for documentation.
Police went to Buy Buy Baby on S. Central Avenue on Oct. 18 to take a report from the store’s manager who accused an employee, Stonisha Vaughan, 39, of stealing. The manager alleged that Vaughan had misused gift cards multiple times over three months, causing the store to lose more than $2,000. Police confronted Vaughan, who admitted to all 18 incidents and to using her employee discount when she wasn’t authorized to do so. She was taken to the police station where she was booked and processed, charged with grand larceny. She is scheduled to appear in court Nov. 7.
Police went to ShopRite on S. Central Avenue Oct. 18 after the loss prevention officer reported a grocery thief was in custody. Ekrem Drenica, 54, was accused of stealing more than $400 in groceries. He was handcuffed and detained, and photos of the groceries were taken. An ambulance was summoned to evaluate the accused thief for reasons not included in the police report. He refused medical treatment. He was released from the store without incident and is due to appear in Greenburgh Court on Nov. 9.
A woman went to police headquarters Oct. 18 to report she was pickpocketed while shopping in Marshalls on S. Central Avenue. She said she was shopping with her teenage son when she noticed her phone was missing. She kept it in a case in her pocket. Also in the case were her driver’s license, several credit cards including her Marshalls card and $60 cash.
The woman told police she remembered being in the sports clothing department when a woman in her 40s with gray/blond hair bumped into her; the woman was carrying a Louis Vuitton handbag and was well dressed. Soon her banks began notifying her of purchases made at Foot Locker in Yonkers, totaling about $1,800 in merchandise. A tracking app located her phone on the move in Queens, Manhattan and Brooklyn. Detectives were given a copy of the report.
Ugne Erika Ragaisyte, 32, was arrested Oct. 17 on W. Hartsdale Avenue, charged with assault second degree with intent to cause physical injury with a weapon. No further information was available regarding her arrest.
This report, covering Greenburgh police activity in Edgemont and Hartsdale from Oct. 10 to Oct. 18, was compiled from official information.
