Police Looking For Help In 2 UWS Robbery Patterns: What To Know

UPPER WEST SIDE, NY — The New York Police Department recently identified two Upper West Side robbery patterns, one related to a string of bank robbery attempts and the other with a group approaching people in the neighborhood and flashing weapons before forcibly taking money and goods.

No arrests have been made in either case, but police released information and pictures over the weekend of suspects wanted in connection to both sets of robberies.

The Bank Robberies

Since March 30, there have been four bank robberies on the Upper West Side that have taken place in a similar fashion.

In the five robberies, four of which happened within the UWS' 20th and 24th Precinct and one in Harlem, an unidentified man enters a bank and gives a note to the teller demanding money.

The robber was only successful in getting any money in two of the five instances, but he was able to flee the scene without being caught each time.

Here's where the five bank robberies took place, according to the police.

• March 30: Chase Bank at 2824 Broadway (Near 110th Street)
• April 1: Chase Bank at 3515 Broadway (Near 144th Street)
• April 1: Chase Bank at 2099 Broadway (Near 73rd Street)
• April 2: Capital One Bank at 175 West 72nd Street
• April 2: Bank of America at 2077 Broadway (Near 72nd Street)

Police released a photo Saturday of the man wanted in connection to the robberies.

The Group Robberies

From March 13 to March 31, there were five robberies on the Upper West Side involving a group approaching different people around the neighborhood and forcibly demanding and taking things.

Four of the five robberies took place within the same three-block stretch from 77th to 79th Street, going from Riverside Drive to inside Central Park. The fifth connected robbery happened on 69th Street and Central Park West.

Here are the five recent UWS robberies that the NYPD has identified as part of a pattern.

March 13: A group followed a 13-year-old boy into the lobby of a residential building near Amsterdam and West 77th Street, and pushed the victim to the floor, and stole his hat, according to police.

March 17: A group approached a 26-year-old and 25-year-old man sitting inside of Central Park near West 79th Street, displayed a knife, and forcibly took two Citi Bikes from the men, according to police. There were no injuries.

March 30: A group approached a 14-year-old and 15-year-old near 52 Riverside Drive (Near West 78th Street) and forcibly took two cellphones and a sweatshirt from the boys while showing a gun, police said. There were no injuries.

March 30: A group entered a residential building near Riverside Drive and West 78th Street and stole an electric scooter, according to police.

March 31: A group approached a 27-year-old man near 19 West 69th Street and took his cellphone and wallet containing $375 while threatening to stab him, according to police. One of the group members fled on an electric scooter, police added. There were no injuries.

Police released a photo Saturday of the group wanted in connection to the robberies.

Anyone with information in regard to the identity of the individuals in either photo is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).