Serial Phone Snatcher Hits Chelsea Train Line: NYPD

CHELSEA, NY - A 56-year-old man in Chelsea was just one of several victims who had phones snatched inside the MTA transit system around Manhattan and the Bronx this week, authorities said.

The first incident was reported about 2:15 p.m. Monday on the 51st Street subway station northbound 6 train platform when the thief snatched a 79-year-old man’s cell phone from his hand, police said.

15 minutes later, a 56-year-old man saw his phone snatched from his hands while on board a southbound F train approaching the 23rd Street station, police said.

The same man is believed to have taken a 61-year-old woman’s cell phone on board a southbound 6 train approaching the Brook Avenue subway station about 7:55 p.m., as well as a 56-year-old man’s cell phone on the northbound 6 train platform inside the Zerega Avenue subway station about 7:20 a.m. the next morning. In the latter incident, the assailant put the victim in a headlock and punched him multiple times before removing the victim’s fanny pack and fleeing the area.

The victim didn’t report any serious injuries to medics and refused medical attention, police said.

Anyone with information in regard to the incident is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).