Video: Man thrown to ground in lobby during violent robbery in Brooklyn
BROOKLYN, New York City (WABC) -- Police are searching for an assailant who assaulted a robbed a man in the victim's own apartment building in Brooklyn, and they're hoping surveillance video will lead to an arrest.
It happened around 2:15 p.m. Tuesday, when the suspect followed 69-year-old Kenneth Harber into his residence on Eastern Parkway.
The video shows him putting the victim in a headlock, throwing him to the ground and stealing his wallet before fleeing the scene.
"He asked for me my wallet, and that's it," Harber said.
His head struck the tile floor of the lobby, ad he suffered a bruise above his right eye. The thief got away with $320, apparently having spotted Harber making a withdrawal at a Chase Bank minutes earlier.
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The attack underscores the city-wide crime statistics released Wednesday by the NYPD, which show a 30% increase in overall crime compared to April of 2020.
Shootings increased by 166%, grand larcenies by 66%, felony assaults by 35%, robberies by 28% and murders by 16%. The only decline was in burglaries, which are down 26%.
Harber's neighbors have certainly noticed the disturbing trend.
"I personally haven't had any issues here. but that is kind of terrifying," Zeph Merkur said. "I do try and stay alert when I am walking around I am often a one-ear bud kind of person."
The investigation is active and ongoing.
Anyone with information in regard to the identity of this individual is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
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