Recent Thefts at 68 Jay Street

Occassionally, we read about a string of burglaries in some of the office buildings in the area. The 55 Washington Street building was hit with thefts in 2006, until cops found DNA evidence that nabbed the criminal. In June, 2009, there was a string of six burglaries again at 55 Washington St, in two weekends (Brooklyn Eagle story). Using video footage, the officers of the 84th Precinct were able to arrest the man for several counts of burglary, petit larceny, trespassing and other charges.

Now, we’ve received a few tips from tenants at 68 Jay Street about increased thefts. Courier Life reported that at 68 Jay St, “Some thug stole a laptop and camera from the Blue Barn Pictures shop on Jay Street on Dec. 20 (2010) while the manager was in the bathroom.” And the below is an anonymous email of an incident that occurred last night.

The perp was able to simply dislodge the door frame from the wall and enter the office. it is not known at this time what was stolen. this took place probably last night or this am. police were at the scene this afternoon and took prints.

in the last few months there have been a number of previous robberies at 68 jay. all of these followed the same pattern: the perp enters an office in the middle of the work day, asks whoever is present in the office some questions (like “is joe here?”) while looking around, then leaves the office. later, the perp quietly returns to the office and grabs an item or two (e.g. laptops, cameras) and runs. police reports have been filed for all of these robberies.

when questioned by tenants the landlord, Chatov / Gutman, has indicated that they do not feel that they are responsible for providing additional security in the building (like cameras or security guards). we’ll see if this more recent and brazen robbery — knocking a door right off the wall — might help them to change their mind.

If you’re leasing office space around Dumbo, please be mindful of unauthorized people in office areas. Report suspicious activity to the 84th Precinct ((718) 875-6811).

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