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Separate Tuesday robberies highlight rising crime in Central Park

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Published  August 14, 2024 7:36am EDT
Central Park
FOX 5 NY

Police seek suspects in Central Park mugging

The NYPD is looking for two suspects accused of robbing two men while they were walking in Central Park. FOX 5 NY's Briella Tomassetti has the details.

CENTRAL PARK - The NYPD is looking for two suspects they say robbed two men while they were walking Tuesday night in NYC's Central Park, the latest in a growing trend of robberies and violent crimes taking place in the park.

Central Park robbery

Police responded to two separate robberies within 24 hours. The most recent happened just before 10:45 p.m. at West Drive and W 62nd Street.

Tuesday night

According to police, two male suspects approached a pair of 20-year-old men, struck up a conversation and then robbed them. 

The suspects didn't display any weapons, but were able to get away with a chain and a vape pen. The victims were not injured.

No arrests have been made.

Tuesday morning

Around 1 a.m., three different people were robbed just outside the entrance to the park at 5th Avenue and 59th Street. 

Teens arrested for alleged Central Park muggings

A group of teenagers has been arrested for allegedly mugging three people in Central Park, police said. It comes at a time of heightened security concerns all around the park. FOX 5 NY’s Linda Schmidt has the details.

Police say the 15, 21 and 35-year-old victims were approached by a group of male suspects, one of whom claimed to have a gun and pointed to his waistband. 

The suspects allegedly took off with a pair of Apple AirPods and a chain necklace, but police eventually caught up with them. 

Three teens – ages 14,16, and 17 – were taken into custody, while one remains on the loose. None of the victims were injured.

‘This is the safest big city in America’

Meanwhile, NYC Mayor Eric Adams took a victory lap on the same day the robberies took place, touting that overall crime is down for the seventh straight month. 

NYC crime statistics

While that may be the case citywide, NYPD crime statistics show major crime is up by 46% in Central Park so far this year compared to the same time last year. Robberies, in the meantime, have surged by 200%.

In the nearby Midtown North Precinct, overall crime has risen by 10%, and robberies by 87%.

"I think we such a vast large area, I think we can use it, we could do a better job of using drones to police city area from the sky," Adams said. "And there's some new technology that we're looking at that I think is going to assist us, we roll it out when it's time to do so."