Thieving Children Plague Upper West Side Bars: Reports

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY - A band of thieving kids have been looting uptown bars for months with no sign of letting up, according to multiple reports.

The same three boys, all between the ages of 8 and 9 years old, have repeatedly targeted Lexington Publick Bar on the Upper East Side and Amsterdam Ale House on the Upper West Side, CBS News reported.

Jacob Rabinowitz, the owner of the Amsterdam Ale House on West 76th Street, told the New York Post he recently confronted the same boy who robbed his customers in February after the youngster was panhandling outside the bar Saturday night.

“He said he was going to beat my ass,” Rabinowitz told The Post. “It was this little kid telling me that.”

In another instance, a boy between 8 and 9 years old stole $700 from an open safe at the Lexington Publick Bar, per CBS. The boys have also used donation sheets to distract customers while they steal wallets or handbags, the outlet said.

"They will literally get caught by one of us robbing the place and be back the next day. They just don't care," Steve Wiebe, who co-owns the Amsterdam Ale House and Lexington Publick Bar, told CBS.

Other bars reportedly targeted by the pint-sized swipers include Stone Street Tavern in the Financial District, Chick Chick and Upside on Amsterdam on the Upper West Side.

CBS added that, due to the kids’ ages, they likely won’t be charged even as juveniles. However, if an adult spotter is nabbed, they could be charged with child endangerment.

Those with any information are asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). Tips can also be submitted via their website or via DM on Twitter @NYPDTips. All calls are kept confidential.