Rolls-Royce owner on Staten Island turns table on car thieves
NEW YORK - The NYPD released a security camera video of burglars breaking into a home on Staten Island early Monday. Police believe the intruders could be responsible for at least three other incidents — including the theft of a Rolls-Royce.
The individuals, believed to be men, hit three homes within an hour early Sunday, June 12, 2022, New York City police officials said.
Two men opened a gate and entered the backyard of a home near Ottavio Promenade and Page Avenue in the Tottenville section at about 3:05 a.m., police said. They tried to open the back door, but it was locked, so they left the property and drove off in a white four-door sedan, police said.
Less than 15 minutes later, two men tried to open a sliding door at the rear of a house near Hylan Boulevard and Indale Avenue in the same neighborhood, according to the NYPD.
"[A] female resident observed the individuals and started screaming," police said. They then got into a car and drove away. No one was hurt.
Then at about 3:55 a.m., two people through a rock through a window on the first floor of a home near St. George Road and Lighthouse Avenue in the Lighthouse Hill section, police said. They climbed into the home and stole a set of car keys, police said. The men then drove away in a 2017 Rolls-Royce Dawn.
The owner of the vehicle, identified only as John, told the Staten Island Advance that he was able to turn the tables on the burglars by using a remote kill switch to turn the luxury ride off, then used a built-in tracking device to locate it in Newark.
"I was downstairs within seconds while they were pulling out of the driveway," John told the local newspaper. "They were attempting to turn it back on, but they couldn’t because I disabled it."
A used 2017 Rolls-Royce Dawn has a typical listing price of around $282,000, according to automotive research company Kelley Blue Book.
The most recent break-in happened at about 3:25 a.m. on Monday, June 20. Five people got into the backyard of a home near Benedict Road and Callan Avenue in the Todt Hill section.
Security camera video shows one intruder flinging a large stone through a sliding glass door. The men then slipped through the hole in the broken glass door and got inside the house, the video shows.
The police said they grabbed a set of car keys but a resident started yelling at them.
"[The] individuals fled the location and attempted to illegally remove two vehicles but were unsuccessful," police said. "The individuals fled on foot to a nearby sedan and drove away to parts unknown."
If you have any information, you can contact NYPD's Crime Stoppers at 800-577-8477 (English), 888-577-4782 (Español), CrimesStoppers.NYPDonline.org, or Twitter @NYPDTips.