Thief Beats, Robs Teen In Astoria School's Elevator : NYPD

ASTORIA, QUEENS -- Police are looking for the thief who followed an 18 year-old-boy into a private school in Astoria and violently robbed him in the elevator.

The robbery unfolded on Sunday inside St. John's Preparatory School, a private Catholic high school at 21-21 Crescent St. The man followed the teen inside the school and into the elevator at around 6:30 p.m., police said.

Once the elevator doors closed, the man punched the teen several times in the head and snatched his cell phone, cops said. Video surveillance shows the man bursting out of the elevator as the teen laid on the ground. The man is then shown throwing the teen from the elevator before fleeing the scene when another person intervened.

The teen was treated for swelling and bruising to his head at Mt. Sinai hospital and later released.

Police described the suspect as a man in his twenties, standing around 6 feet tall and weighing about 175 pounds. He last seen wearing a blue jacket and blue pants.

Anyone with information in regards to this incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).

Lead photo and video via NYPD.