Ice Cream Thieves Who Stole Dozens of Cartons are Busted

Two ice cream thieves who stole dozens of ice cream cartons from a Gristedes Supermarket in Chelsea were arrested by police in Brooklyn Sunday after someone called in a tip to the NYPD about where they were, the New York Post reported.

Mark Hicks, 37, and Ebony Gillian, 34, were arraigned on Monday night in Manhattan Criminal Court on charges of petit larceny and criminal possession of stolen property, the Manhattan DA's office said. Each suspect's bail was set at $1,000. They are both due in court on Friday, Aug. 26.

Earlier this month, Robert Montalvo, manager of the Gristedes Supermarket on Ninth Avenue, told the DA's office the pair stole about 80 cartons of ice cream from his store and put them in bags and shopping carts. Montalvo stopped them at the exit to the store and got the cartons back from the thieves, he said.

It wasn't just that one incident, and it's not just Hicks and Gillian — ice cream thefts are sweeping Manhattan this year, the New York Post reported. Thieves steal the ice cream and resell them illegally on the cheap to bodegas. John Catsimatidis, CEO of Gristedes, issued a $5,000 reward for anyone who had information on who was stealing the ice cream.

Citywide, there have been more than 250 complaints of ice cream thefts and 130 arrests in 2016, the NYPD said. "We are working closely with retailers to combat the thefts of ice cream," the NYPD said.

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