Police are warning the public to beware of a quartet of moped and motorcycle-riding robbers who are swiping pricey Apple headphones right off the heads of nearly two dozen unsuspecting victims in crime spree that started late last month and quickly escalated. Last Saturday alone, eight with men and women wearing AirPods Max headphones were targeted, including two on the Upper East Side, and one each in Central Park and Sutton Place.
In a two-hour theft rampage that started around 2:40 pm on Saturday, February 18th, police say the four suspects, who are seen in surveillance images riding on two different bikes — a black moped and one red motorcycle — snuck up on all their victims, who are likely jamming to tunes on their $550 high-fidelity noise-cancelling headphones, unaware they’re about to robbed.
First, it was a 26-year-old woman targeted for her AirPods Max headphones at East 59th Street and Madison Avenue. The suspect riding on the rear hopped off, snatched the pricey product then rode away, police say.
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Minutes later, a 34-year-old woman had her Apple headphones stolen on the 86th Street Transverse near East Drive in Central Park, according to investigators. After that, a 21-year-old had his AirPods Max stolen near Park Avenue and East 77th Street, while a 23-year-old man had his taken near East 57th Street and Second Avenue in Sutton Place.
Four additional victims would also also see their headphones swiped right off their heads last Saturday. For the two thieves, two hours of crime scored them $4,400 worth of expensive electronics — that we know about. The information provided by NYPD only include thefts that have been reported to police.
The crime spree involving the moped and motorcyle-riding suspects began back on Saturday, January 28th, when a 23-year-old man had his headphone stolen off his head in Chelsea, police say. The following Sunday, February 5th, they’d strike again, police say, targeting a 29 year old woman near Third Avenue and East 58th Street.
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Following their second heist, detectives say the crew began ramping up their criminal efforts, striking three days in a row.
According to investigators, five people were robbed of their headphones on Wednesday, February 8th, in Gramercy, the East Village, the Village and Lower Manhattan. Three more victims had their AirPods Max stolen on Thursday, February 9 — also in the East Village and Lower Manhattan, police say.
Video released by investigators on Wednesday show two of the suspects in action, with the passenger getting off the black moped holding two pairs of Apple headphones and walking into Washington Square Park after their 13th robbery — one of three that happened on Friday, February 10th.
In total, there have been 21 different robberies reported to police involving the four moped-riding suspects.
One suspect seen in the video — the passenger — is described by police as a man a medium build and curly black hair who was seen wearing a black bubble jacket and black pants, while the driver is said to be a man with a slim build, wearing a black helmet, a black hooded jacket, black pants and tan shoes.
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