Santa Claus isn’t the only one checking his Big Apple wish list — thieves are too.
Grinch grand larcenists are primed for the holiday rush and New York’s Finest told The Post they’re ready — “deploying the Citywide Pickpocket Team both in transit and to locations that attract pickpockets.”
A police source said “that means anywhere where large crowds gather, including the Rockefeller Center tree.”
The NYPD has reason to cover their shopping bases this holiday season.
In the Midtown North Precinct — which encompasses the Diamond District, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the Theatre District, Restaurant Row, Radio City Music Hall and Rockefeller Plaza — major crime is up 47% so far this year through Nov. 27 compared to the same time last year. Robberies have surged 19% (148 from 124), burglaries 6% (196 from 185) grand larceny nearly 60% (1,786 from 1,120), and petty larcenies 41% (2,516 from 1,786), data show.
Major crime for Midtown South, which cover tourist magnets Madison Square Garden and Macy’s flagship store in Herald Square has soared by 50%, including robberies surging 51% (594 from 394), burglaries 54% (607 from 395) and grand larcenies 65% (2,085 from 1,266) compared to last year. Petty larcenies climbed 51% (3,078 from 2,039).
Major crime in the West Village’s Sixth Precinct is up 52% this year, with the lowlights being robbery spiking 38% (233 from 169), burglary soaring 76% (388 from 220) and grand larcenies climbing 61% (1,256 from 779) so far this year through Nov. 27, compared the same period in 2022, NYPD data show. Petty larcenies are also up 52% (1,803 from 1,182).
In the Flatiron District, where grand larcenies are up 29%, (945 from 732), trendy women’s fashion store Intermix on Fifth Avenue has been ripped off by shoplifters “between 15 and 20 times” over the last two months alone — with up to $40,000 in merch pilfered, said a store employee.
“Sorry, I have to feed my family,” muttered one thief as he ripped off a $1,000 shearling jacket, the employee recalled. “It’s almost inevitable that we are going to get hit [over the holidays].”
At upscale luggage store Tumi on Fifth Avenue, also in the Flatiron, they’ve chained the pricey merch that ranges from $700 to $2,500 at the front of the store — to avoid “grab and runs,” said associate manager Jayson Peralta.
Outside Bloomingdale’s on Broadway, near Broome Street in SoHo, tourist Stefanie Alram, 26, of Austria, was armed with pepper spray given to her by a New Yorker friend. Alram said “it was way safer” in the city before COVID then it is now.
Bloomingdale’s SoHo sits in the confines of the Fifth Precinct, where major crime is up 45%, including robbery by 42% (94 from 66), burglary 56% (158 from 101) and grand larceny 54% (563 from 366), the data show. Petty larcenies are up 48% (876 from 591).
Liana Wool, 29, of Barcelona and her pal Rachel Grim, 30 of Brooklyn, both carry screeching Birdie personal safety alarms to ward off attackers and thieves.
“I only carry my wallet in the front pocket when I go out at night and the phone goes in the coat pocket,” Grim noted.
Belfast tourists Rosie Carey, 58, and Karen Dunbar, 55, said their gameplan is to keep their handbags in front of them.
“I stay in a safe area and [make sure] not go off the beaten track,” Carey noted.
And it won’t be easy pickings for poachers at Bloomies.
Three security guards stationed at the entrance of Bloomingdale’s SoHo vowed to the Post they were “ready to apprehend” pilferers.
The NYPD “encourages shoppers to carry only the cash and credit cards needed on your shopping trip” and “while dining or shopping, do not leave your handbag over the back of a chair, on a stroller or in a shopping cart.” The department also pointed out “that if someone bumps into you while shopping or walking in a crowd, be aware that this action might be related to a pickpocket.”
Citywide, major crime is up 27%, the NYPD data show. Robbery has climbed 30%, burglary 26%, grand larceny 34% and petty larceny 36%, the stats show.
