The officer Kyle McLaughlin spoke next to his partner in "fighting" crime in Lower Manhattan at the promotion ceremony.
Once inside the apartment, the man removed the victim's purse containing approximately $350 and assorted credit/debit cards.
The 90-year-old woman was walking on West 64th Street when a man approached her and took her purse from her walker.
Investigators say the suspects took the handbags of six women between the ages of 23 and 35.
A woman who had just purchased a $3,100 Louis Vuitton pocketbook at the Walt Whitman Shops was robbed while helping her disabled child into her Long Island home.
All but one of those victims is over 65-years-old. The attacker often would push or punch the victim to get them to comply with his demands.