A 15-year-old boy was left shaken after three people robbed him outside a building on Gleane Street in Elmhurst, ripping off his jacket while one of them brandished a cutting instrument, police said. The NYPD has now released surveillance images of the suspects and is asking New Yorkers to help identify them.
What Police Released
According to NYPD Crime Stoppers, the department posted the images on March 13 and laid out what happened a month earlier, on Feb. 13 at about 3:50 p.m., in front of 41-56 Gleane Street. The post identifies the victim as a 15-year-old male and says three subjects approached him, forcibly removed his jacket and brandished a cutting instrument while fleeing the scene.
Where It Happened
41-56 Gleane Street is in Elmhurst, a neighborhood patrolled by the NYPD's 110th Precinct. The command's public page lists the precinct address and community contacts for residents of Elmhurst and Corona.
How To Help Investigators
The NYPD is asking anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers. Tips can be submitted by calling 1-800-577-TIPS or, for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA, or by using the Crime Stoppers website. The post also notes that tips may be sent via direct message to @NYPDTips on X, and that information leading to an arrest could qualify for a reward.
Street-Level Context
The appeal comes amid a string of teen-targeted street robberies this month in which suspects have, in some cases, flashed knives and grabbed jackets or phones. Earlier in March, a series of incidents in Brooklyn in which knives or machetes were displayed during robberies was documented a related pattern by local reporters.
Legal Note
Robbery is a felony under New York law, and the use or threatened use of a dangerous instrument can elevate the charges. Court rulings and legal summaries make clear that displaying a blade or other cutting instrument during a theft can affect the degree prosecutors pursue. For background on how New York's robbery statutes treat dangerous instruments, see People v. Grant.
Anyone with video, photos or identifying information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS, use the online portal, or message @NYPDTips on X. Witnesses are urged to preserve footage with timestamps and share it with investigators rather than confronting anyone. Tips can also be submitted through the Crime Stoppers website.
