A bougie bandit has been arrested for stealing $20,000 of booty from high-end boutiques in NYC in the past five months – and in one case even stripped down a store mannequin, police sources said.
Jeffrey Gonzalez, who has 76 arrests on his record, allegedly stole fashion merchandise that included pricey Coach bags, a $2,300 Falconeri coat and a $3,400 Acne Studios jacket, the sources said.
In his most stunning heist, the 48-year-old strolled into into Zadig Voltaire Boutique on Washington Street in the Meatpacking District on Feb. 3 and allegedly stripped the clothes right off a dummy, a law enforcement source said.
Jeffrey Gonzalez strolled into into Zadig Voltaire Boutique on Washington Street in the Meatpacking District on Feb. 3 and allegedly took the clothes off the back of a mannequin, a law enforcement source said. Google
Gonzalez has 76 arrests on his record. Gaia – stock.adobe.com“He disrobed the mannequin,” the source said.
He made off with a bag worth $498 and a Liston leather jacket worth $798, for a grand total of $1,296 in the mannequin mugging, the sources said.
Gonzalez was suspected in a pattern of nine heists that began Dec. 20 when he walked into the Falconeri shop on Fifth Avenue in the Flatiron District and swiped a jacket worth $2,300 and a vest priced at $475 right off the rack, the sources said.
Then, on Jan. 27, he strolled into a Coach store on Prince St. in SoHo and removed $1,650 worth of bags, officials said.
In the following month, he allegedly picked up the pace, hitting Acne Studios in the West Village and grabbing a $3,400 coat, the sources said.
He also allegedly pilfered about $3,000 in Prada and other designer shades from two Sunglass Huts in Soho, officials said.
The thief allegedly ran off with a Liston leather jacket like the one shown here. Neiman Marcus
Gonzalez allegedly stole this Falconeri jacket that sells for $2,300. Falconeri
Gonzalez also allegedly stole this Gucci Blondie top handle bag sells for $3,900. GucciHe walked into a Gucci store at One World Trade Center on March 25 and stole a handbag that was selling for nearly $4,000 and a silk twill scarf worth $240, the sources said.
Finally, on April 13, Gonzalez walked into the Moschino store on Wooster Street in Soho with a female accomplice.
The woman ran out of the store but Gonzalez was nabbed with a purse worth $2,145 and arrested, officials said.
The Moschino store on Wooster Street in Soho was also hit. Google
Pricey clothing store Falconeri was also on the alleged thief’s shoplifting list. Google MapsHe is in jail on Rikers Island on $15,000 bail on three counts of grand larceny, city records show.
Retail theft is down 8% so far this year — from 17,002 to 15,653 — citywide but it’s up 57.2% over five years ago, according to NYPD data as of April 13.
