Thief Says He Has Coronavirus During Harlem Robbery: Police

HARLEM, NY — A Harlem robber threatened a laundromat worker with the deadly coronavirus during an early Thursday morning stick up, an NYPD spokesperson said.

The potentially-infected thief entered Green Laundry on St. Nicholas Avenue around 3 a.m. and used a pen to write a note to an employee stationed at the business' counter, police said. The note claimed that the man had both a pistol and coronavirus and demanded money, an NYPD spokesperson said.

After handing the worker the note, the robber climbed behind the counter and snatched $23 in cash from a bowl before fleeing the business on foot, police said.

No arrests have been made in connection with the robbery, and the NYPD investigation into the crime is ongoing, a department spokesperson said.

The laundromat employee was not injured during the robbery, police said.