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Just as there's word that subway crime is down versus that same period last year (318 felonies versus 2005's 510), it turns out that the police are nabbing crooks by setting up shopping carts and purses on subway platforms to tempt thieves in the past few weeks. The NYPD calls it "Operation Lucky Bag," and the NY Post has an amusing picture of a folding grocery cart set up. The police love how they've been able to arrest people with extensive criminal records, but some lawyers say it's entrapment. Yeah, like, what if someone is taking the shopping cart or purse away because they are going to bring them to the station agent for the MTA Lost and Found? One police source tells the Post the operation is a way for the Transit Chief to boost his number of arrests. Aha! That, and giving out summons left and right for anything.
And the lower crime numbers for 2006? It seems that cellphone and iPod related thefts were the cause of the high numbers in 2005, so we guess that Santa gave gadgets to enough people last year.
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Doesn't this go against the 'if you see something, say something' mantra they've beaten into our terrorized heads? Now THEY'RE the ones actually leaving 'something' on the damn platform. There could be a bomb in that granny cart!!
the police view all of us as perps
The NYPD and MTA's rules about the subway are totally confusing. I wonder if the cops stage the stings more "naturally" - like a cop leaves his cart of groceries while he's making a very long call on a payphone and not paying attention.
interesting that -- entrapment or not -- this would seem to boost the crime numbers, right?
I am just waiting for the NYCLU lawsuit on behalf of the poor innocent schlub who tries to take the purse to the token booth and gets busted for trying to do a good deed.
Very clever...they either arrest you for taking it or they arrest you for not "saying something" once you've "seen something"
I had my wallet and filofax ripped off on a platform several years ago. A team of two women and one guy.
It was non-violent but really maddening. Thanks NYPD.
Calling this "entrapment" strikes me as a stretch. Passers-by are free to ignore an abandoned shopping cart (Lord knows we've all seen this happen) or to report the anomaly to a transit cop or change booth attendant. The campaign is "If you see something, SAY something," not "Pick up a possible bomb and carry it to a place where more people, including you, can be killed."
There's a ton of evidence that most crime is committed by a tiny number of repeat offenders, and this effort strikes me as a good way to pick them up. The PD's occasional sweeps of turnstyle jumpers always turn up a disproportionate number of people carrying drugs or weapons, or fleeing an outstanding warrant.
It did happen to me once like a year ago in the N(or W) train(Astoria) ,after we all had to transfer to another train because of the "weekend schedule". It was after midnight.I found a wallet in the seat in front of me. NOT on the side of the seat or in the floor, it was seating right in the middle of an empty seat(looking at me!). I found it too suspicious,(too good to be true)but i took it anyways,got off the train two stations later,and called my boyfriend to ask him what should i do. Of course, he ask me to check inside to see if there was money(no that we'll take it) BUT there was no money instead there was PLENTY of credit cards, plus the guy's drivers license. I felt bad for the guy, and even if i looked for a phone # i found none,so as a good girl i gave it to the guy in the MetroCards booth.
It was VERY suspicios that at that time,very late at night,on a weekend NONE of the guys seatting in the train took the wallet before i did,plus one sitting near where i was sitting ,kind of stared at me when i took the wallet, and then he got off @the same station i did.
coincidence? don't think so!
How is it illegal to take abandoned property? Is it illegal to pick up garbage then?
NYPD has nothing else to do I guess - when they aren't on the OT gravy train nosing into passengers belongings.
In NYC if you steal any wallet or handbag containing any credit card or any property with a value in excess of $1000 it is a Class E Felony 155.30 penal Law punishable up to 4 years! Petit Larceny 155.25 wasn't a serious enough arrest/collar to entrap someone for so they had American Express the sleaziest credit card company give them AE credit cards to plant in the wallets. Now if you steal over $1 million it is a Class B Felony punishable up to 25 years. Now that sounds like a big bust let's borrow a million and a penny from NYC billionaire Mayor Bloomberg and leave a open shopping bag with a cool mill and a penny and wait for some person to pick it up, pounce on him or her with guns drawn and give them 25 years zero tolerance. The police are becoming more like Nazis everyday in NYC they are mean and nasty!!! It really is sick and depraved what they do here!!!!!!!
In NYC if you steal any wallet or handbag containing any credit card or any property with a value in excess of $1000 it is a Class E Felony 155.30 penal Law punishable up to 4 years! Petit Larceny 155.25 wasn't a serious enough arrest/collar to entrap someone for so they had American Express the sleaziest credit card company give them AE credit cards to plant in the wallets. Now if you steal over $1 million it is a Class B Felony punishable up to 25 years. Now that sounds like a big bust let's borrow a million and a penny from NYC billionaire Mayor Bloomberg and leave a open shopping bag with a cool mill and a penny and wait for some person to pick it up, pounce on him or her with guns drawn and give them 25 years zero tolerance. The police are becoming more like Nazis everyday in NYC they are mean and nasty!!! It really is sick and depraved what they do here!!!!!!!