By Bob Tannenhauser
Police are seeking the public’s assistance in connection with a robbery that occurred Sunday, April 2nd, at 4:07 p.m., at Millennium Smoke and News, located at 2345 Broadway, between 85th and 86th Streets.
An unknown man entered the store, displaying pepper spray, police said. He then demanded money be given to him from the register and attempted to use the pepper spray. The 25-year-old clerk handed over approximately $1,000 and $500 worth of products. The robber then fled the location on foot, heading northbound on Broadway toward 86th Street. There were no injuries reported from this incident.
The individual sought is described as a male with a dark complexion, approximately 25 years old, 5’8” tall, and weighing 120 pounds. He was last seen wearing a brown sweatsuit and a black vest.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/, on Twitter @NYPDTips.
All calls are strictly confidential.
Sweet beginning of summer
Is robbing a weed store an offense that sends you to prison? I thought legalization was the solution?
The legalization has led to stores illegally selling products (crime #1) and the said stores being robbed on a regular basis (crime #2). So essentially “legalizing” cannabis has led to more crime. I guess when you downgrade every offense or don’t report it entirely, it doesn’t really happen. Way to go NYC…….
It is socially acceptable to wear a mask these days, but yet robbers don’t. Lucky us, we end up with a perfect mug shot. Nobody said criminals were smart, but this takes the cake for stupidity.
Smart clerk. Glad there was no gun. 4 o’clock on a Sunday- whew.
No surprise. These “smoke” shops and pot stores are open for endless crimes. Other states have shown crime zooms around these establishments.
Other states do not permit the selling of cannabis from smoke shops. They have rules and regulations. These neighborhood crimes fall on the shoulders of NYC for permitting these stores to open. Are people going to have to die to get these stores closed?
And what’s going to happen if this individual is apprehended? A slap on the wrist?
Puff puff pass. The UWS has the most weedstores in the city. Excellent
The smoke shops legal or illegal aren’t they mostly dealing in cash? Seems like an easy target if that is the case. Product is also fungible that makes these stores more susceptible to robbery.
Tragedy in a Harlem smoke shop over the weekend – a fatal shooting.
A store selling narcotics illegally was illegally robbed by an individual who stole illegal narcotics. Are we surprised?
In the two other states in which I have shopped, California and Illinois, NOBODY just walks in. There is an outer room with an armed guard who checks ID and scans it. Then if all is well, you are buzzed in. Further, in Illinois you make your selection at one counter and pay at another and the payment window is behind security glass. It really is stunning that with all this experience laid about before us, the morons that run this state did not learn from our sister states’ experiences. For some reason, they thought we’d be different.
You’ve described professional dispensaries and we will have those in NYS once the State gives out licences. These smoke shops don’t have licenses so there aren’t any rules for them to obey. Quite simply they have nothing to lose so they do whatever they want and there are never any consequences and on top of everything else the government looks the other way. I’ve said it before I’ll say it again, we are doomed.
It’s a smoke shop, not a weed shop. Cigarettes and the only cigars in quite a large radius, along with candy and lotto tics. Perfectly legal and deserving of our respect. I feel bad for them and all of our retail stores that have to deal with this lawlessness.
Ummmm no Lesley. They sell weed illegally. They don’t even hide it. They themselves are lawless.
I don’t think so – the local bodega sells cigarettes and don’t get robbed every week. I guess these stores are making so much money for something that they can put up with weekly robbery. I can only assume people who volunteer to work there are getting paid big $ too?
The ineptitude and corruption of the city’s roll out of cannabis licenses and the resulting sprawl of illegal smoke shops dealing in cash and drugs is a direct contributor to this. NYC is ruled by a Clowntocracy blinded by ideology and special interests cash. But I guess we voted for this so…