Shoplifter attacks NYC Trader Joe’s worker with garbage can lid in vacancy-plagued Flatiron

A shoplifter walloped a Manhattan Trader Joe’s worker with a trash-can lid after the employee tried to stop the thief from leaving the store Wednesday, cops said.

The thief barged into the chain store’s location on Sixth Avenue near West 22nd Street in the vacancy-plagued Flatiron District around 10:50 a.m., then snatched an unspecified amount of merchandise, police said.

When a 40-year-old male employee tried to stop the crook from leaving, the culprit picked up a garbage-can lid and smacked the worker with it, authorities said.

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The crook ran off, heading north on Sixth Avenue, and was still on the loose Wednesday afternoon.

The employee refused medical attention for minor injuries.

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The crime came days after The Post revealed that several “big box” retailers in the once-thriving Manhattan business district — including Lowes, Bed Bath & Beyond and Staples — have fled over the last few years.

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Businesses who are trying to hang on have been plagued by rampant shoplifting and thefts, according to workers and city crime statistics.

The department’s 13th Precinct, which covers the Flatiron District, has seen recent spikes in retail theft and petit larceny, the data show.

Over the past two years, retail thefts have gone up by 55.7% and petit larcenies have jumped by over 34% within the precinct boundaries, according to the data.

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