A thief disguised as an Amazon worker fought a Queens building employee as he stole an armful of packages from the location’s lobby, police said, in just the latest of a growing trend of delivery robberies plaguing the Big Apple.
The brazen crook — wearing an Amazon delivery vest — struck at around 10:18 a.m. on Nov. 9 at a building near 44th Avenue and 84th Street, where he was caught on camera carrying boxes from the building’s common space, cops revealed Wednesday.
The 49-year-old superintendent who was clocked in the face by the thief, said the incident was the same story “happening everywhere” in the city.
“Crime is escalating,” the super, who identified himself as Tom, told The Post. “Why not do it, if there is no repercussion? Crime is exploding, and at what point does it stop? It’s getting worse and we need solutions.”
While the crook was still at large with an undetermined amount of loot, members of the building industry said the crime was just one of a pattern they feel is being fueled by lax penalties for such offenses.
“People are aware of those no-punishment [policies] for lower level crimes,” said Andrzej, a building super from Queens, who asked that his last name not be used.
“And on the other hand, if a police officer is going to arrest someone, he already knows that OK, he’s gonna lose an hour, an hour and a half to do the report and everything,” he added. “And that individual is gonna pretty much walk out of the precinct sooner than he finishes the report — it’s kind of discouraging then to do their job.”
The suspect was caught on video swiping packages while dressed as an Amazon deliveryman. DCPIThe problem is also being caused by increasing reliance on online shopping – and increasingly sophisticated crooks, building managers said.
In the case of the phony Amazon worker, the culprit rode into the garage on a bicycle while a resident was driving out. From there, he had access to the package room, Tom said.
“I’m sure he’s been here before, because he knew where to go,” he said. “Somebody had told me they saw someone in the building, taking things, and then I realized packages were missing from the package room. I saw him in the garage, he was trying to take more stuff, and I guess we had no choice [but fight].”
One in seven Americans have seen at least one delivery package stolen through 2022 so far, a recent study by C+R Research said. People who live in cities are more likely to be victims of porch pirates, the study said, although exact number of packages stolen in New York City wasn’t clear.
Delivery-package theft is a problem throughout the year in Gotham, but residents are on high alert in the middle of the holiday season with 84% of Americans plan to have at least one package delivered this year, the study said. Some 28% said they planned to shop more online this year than in 2021, the study said.
MSNBC host Stephanie Ruhle posted Nest video on Twitter on Tuesday showing she had been a victim of a porch pirate, who came in through a gate in her New York City home and took items from near a front door.
“To whomever stole the packages in front of my door, I hope you have good use for my daughter’s Christmas show costume,” she wrote. “It’s too late to get another & she will be absolutely heartbroken & if you get really sweaty in sports clothes you stole- that’s not sweat. It’s kid’s tears.”
As package thefts became common in unlocked building vestibules, many managers in the five boroughs installed business-access delivery systems so that packages could be left in secured areas instead of in the unlocked foyers. Amazon also uses dropoff lockers where orders can be picked up.
But the problems continue, Andrzej said.
“Sometimes they do leave the package in the foyers, so pretty much anyone can have access to the foyers,” he said. Packages are often delivered to the wrong building too, making them more susceptible to getting swiped, he added.
“What we experience here, most likely, a lot of trainees being put on those routes and that’s where the problem is,” he told The Post. “The packages are being left in a different location, that’s what we feel is the problem.’
The Post has reached out to Amazon for comment.
Some thieves have been using creative ways to get into buildings where boxes may be stored, such as one serial robber who used a credit card to get through locked front doors. Jeffrey Lopez, 50, who had 69 prior arrests, was busted in April for stealing a package from a building on East 90th Street, about three months after he was booked on five counts on the same charge.
That same month, a 60-year-old man was bludgeoned with a brick outside a Harlem building when he confronted a woman he believed was snatching packages from the lobby. The victim was hospitalized with severe lacerations in that caught-on-video confrontation.
