Recently in Theft / Robbery / Mugging Category

At least taxpayers will save the money of hiring a New York City immigration lawyer to deport the "Mount Sinai Lab Rat."

Dr. Mohsen Hosseinkhani is accused of felony burglary charges for sabotaging cardiology experiments out of spite after losing a hospital cardiology fellowship at the Cardiovascular Research Center in Manhattan, reports the New York Post. But instead of facing his charges in court, the disgraced doctor has reportedly fled back to his native Iran.

Bank tellers breathe a sigh of relief. The Dapper Bandit was arrested. Big banks and their New York City workers' compensation lawyers now have one less workplace hazard to worry about.

The Dapper Bandit, also known as Dana Connor, is a life-long bank robber notoriously known for robbing banks while dressed as if attending a business meeting. Usually handing over a demand note and flashing a gun, the bank robber made off with thousands of dollars in a recent crime spree, reports the New York Post.

This Tribeca office robbery isn't the typical worker injury case that a New York City workers' compensation lawyer hears. Usually, workers get injured by typing on their keyboards too long or having bad posture while sitting.

But for one 23-year-old office worker, worker's compensation injuries involve being attacked in the middle of the day by a knife-wielding thug and suffering a broken jaw, reports the New York Post.

The city of New York has seen a 16 percent increase in subway thefts so far this year. This may due in large part to iPhone thefts and other thefts of small (and expensive) electronic gadgets.

To combat the theft, the NYPD is coming up with innovative ways to nab criminals.

In its newest effort, the NYPD will flood the subway system with decoy police officers, reports the New York Post. These decoys have been trained to act like marks for criminals, perhaps by acting like clueless tourists or passed-out college kids.

An alleged Queens thief was arrested after the iPhone he stole secretly took his picture and emailed it back to the phone’s owners. The iPhone theft app, iGotYa, is being credited with nabbing the suspected thief and returning the phone to the rightful owner.

Brian Chattoo, 23, is accused of stealing the iPhone 4 after bumping into his 31-year-old victim on Liberty Avenue, reports the New York Post. Unbeknown to the thief, the iPhone was equipped with a $5.99 app called iGotYa. The app snaps a picture of the phone’s user when an incorrect password is entered into the phone.

A judge generously freed Diane McCloud from jail so that she could get a heart transplant. McCloud repaid that kindness by continuing to commit crimes. Now McCloud will have to serve her original sentence plus an extra year. As McCloud's doctor says that her heart will eventually give out, there's a chance this penalty could be a life sentence for the woman.

In January, Judge Francis Ricigliano let McCloud out of jail 15 months early so that she could get a life-saving heart transplant, reports the New York Post. But instead of using that time to extend her life, McCloud robbed drug stores.

The New York Police Department said it is investigating Dexter Isaac’s confession that he shot and robbed Tupac Shakur in 1994. Isaac, currently serving life in prison for murder, robbery, and fraud, claims that he made the confession because the statute of limitations for the crime had already run, and so no one else could be charged with the crime, reports Reuters.

In 1994, Tupac Shakur was robbed and shot five times (twice in the head) after leaving a recording studio in Manhattan. Amazingly, Tupac did not die and checked himself out of the hospital shortly after surgery was complete. The robbery and shooting remains unsolved, but the incident is largely believed to have sparked the bitter feud between Tupac and Notorious B.I.G. (who released the hit single “Who Shot Ya?”).

Eighty-five-year-old widow Renee Fuld from Queens has accused her home aide, Jacki Pokuwaah, of allegedly stealing $800,000 and turning her apartment into a boarding house without her knowledge. The New York Daily News reported Fuld, who is essentially bedridden, claimed her aide spent the money on shopping extravaganzas.

“The only thing I could figure out is I gave her money to buy things and she kept it,” said Fuld, who employed Pokuwaah for almost seven years. “I’m just sorry I didn’t see her taking money.” The 85-year-old contended that Pokuwaah, 52, also allowed at least seven relatives and friends to move in to her apartment without paying any rent.

New York City's most-wanted bank robber, Marat Mikhaylich, allegedly the "Holiday Bandit," was finally arrested in Queens this week after his latest heist, an armed robbery at Cathay Bank in Edison, New Jersey. Police were able to locate Mikhaylich after they found that he had fled the scene using the same cab he arrived in at the bank.

According to the New York Daily News, NYPD's chief spokesman Paul Browne said a detective at the department's Real Time Crime Center had discovered that the car Mikhaylich took in Edison had traveled to Queens. Authorities then placed the vehicle under surveillance and eventually tracked and caught the bandit in Forest Hills.

Authorities reported that an unidentified bandit masquerading as an exterminator is currently wanted in Brooklyn for at least five different burglaries. According to the New York Daily News, the thief first struck in Coney Island on January 2 and has burglarized four other residences since February 14 with the same disguise each time.

Police said the devious crook told the first victim that he needed to fumigate the home when he arrived at the West Second Street residence in Coney Island. Once inside, the thief stole numerous pieces of jewelry before the resident returned home. He repeated the same act with other unsuspecting victims.