NEW YORK (PIX11) – Seven suspects arrested in a robbery ring bust in New York City were expected to be arraigned Tuesday.
The suspects were allegedly part of an organized crime enterprise accused of riding around on mopeds and robbing people of their phones. The robbery ring is tied to more than 60 incidents in New York City over the past few months, authorities said.
The suspects arrested are facing charges ranging from grand larceny to tampering with evidence and resisting arrest.
Police have identified 14 members of the crew. Police are still searching for 30-year-old Victor Parra, the alleged leader of the robbery ring.
Parra recruited his accomplices by allegedly blasting WhatsApp messages looking for volunteers, officials said. The texts would specify the phone models he was looking for.
“I have money. I’m available. Go get them,” Parra allegedly said in the WhatsApp messages, police said.
The phones would then be sent to Parra, where he paid the tech guy to hack the phones, clear out the victims’ bank accounts, and make fraudulent purchases, police said. Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been stolen from the victims.
The scooter operators made $100 a day and the phone snatchers were paid between $300-$600 per phone, according to NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny.
“These perpetrators are part of a sophisticated criminal enterprise made up of immigrants who have recently arrived in the United States,” Kenny said at a press briefing Monday. “This network of thieves predominantly lives in the migrant shelter system.”
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