An airline passenger going through security at JFK airport last night was relieved of $5,000 cash by a quick-fingered TSA officer, authorities say. A TSA spokesperson tells us the employee has been working for the TSA for over four years, and she's been identified as Alexandra Schmid. She was allegedly caught on surveillance camera taking the cash from a passenger's jacket as it moved along the X-Ray conveyor belt at the A checkpoint in Terminal Four. more ›

Authorities shut down two subway lines under Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn last night after an iPhone thief dashed into the tunnel. The Post reports that a 19-year-old suspect allegedly stole the phone from a woman waiting for the R train at around 6:40 p.m., and ran down the tunnel. The woman, who was probably seconds away from crushing her opponents in Words With Friends, chased the man down the tracks. more ›

Two Romanian men were busted for allegedly stealing close to $18,000—in one night—from ATMs from a JPMorgan Chase bank in Queens, all thanks to some handy tricked-out Dunkin' Donuts gift cards. more ›

You don't see the mayor of New York take the stand in a trial every day, but today is one of those days. As part of the ongoing criminal case against political consultant John Haggerty the prosecution today called hizzoner to the stand and he so has, with a chorus of twitterers present. This isn't the first time a sitting mayor has taken the stand, but it may be the first time one has done so as the victim of a crime. And if lawyers were hoping for a testy Bloomberg, they seem to be getting their wish. more ›

Just one more travel-induced headache: luggage-related larcenies are up almost 30 percent at JFK airport, so maybe think twice before checking that bag. And don't expect to get it back once it's gone—only 28 of the 299 complaints filed this year have lead to arrests. more ›

Some people steal to cover for their lack of talent, while others steal out of love. But Richard Bassik steals because he has a $25,000-a-month lottery addiction. Bassik is a Manhattan property manager of Downtown Properties who admitted to embezzling $2 million from his clients in order to support his habit. He was charged with funneling money meant for taxes, maintenance and other necessities for 13 buildings into his own secret accounts. more ›

The police are looking for a man suspected of impersonating a police officer while robbing six pharmacies and one Banana Republic. According to the Staten Island Advance, "Bension Mamedov, 36, wore a police shield and police jacket when he removed articles from the store shelves of Duane Reade on Hylan Boulevard in Grant City and the CVS on Amboy Road in Great Kills, cops allege. He later returned the items at the cash register as if they were previously purchased, according to police. His MO was similar during the other robberies. He identified himself as an NYPD officer during the thefts, which also took place at drug stores in Manhattan and Brooklyn between October and June." Mamedov is around 6' tall and 210 pounds. Contact Crimestoppers with more information. more ›

Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance announced that Republican operative John Haggerty was indicted for allegedly stealing $1.1 million of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's money. The Post explains, "The indictment came after The Post ran a series of stories detailing how the mayor wired $1.2 million to the state Independence Party in two transactions right before the [2009] election so it could transfer $750,000 to Haggerty, a once-trusted member of Bloomberg's campaign team, for the poll-watching effort." more ›

A juror passing judgment on a credit card thief allegedly swiped plastic from the man sitting near her—who was also a juror in the case! The News reports that 20-year-old Jennifer Mercado returned from lunch carrying several shopping bags full of new shoes. She now claims that John Postrk gave her permission to use his American Express card because "He came on to me... It's a he-said, she-said situation. In court, they will find out he's lying." Postrk's lawyers say the credit cards, along with his metrocard, disappeared from his coat pocket on March 8, the first day of the trial. "You've got to be really stupid to do that in front of a judge, court officers, law enforcement and all the cameras in this building," said one courthouse employee, who'd heard about the case. more ›

Today Brooklyn DA Charles Hynes announced two indictments against three people charged with scamming the Authority out of more than $150,000 in two separate schemes carried out over the course of four years. The ringleader, according to prosecutors, was Jacqueline Jackson, 51, the head of the Legal Support Unit in NYC Transit's Law Department. "Jacqueline Jackson, whose job it was to save taxpayers money by fighting frivolous lawsuits against the NYCTA, cost those taxpayers money, by stealing from the very agency that hired her," Hynes said, telling reporters, "These schemes make my head hurt. You think of all the things they could have done if they used their genius for good." more ›

Days after a Brooklyn cop and a Queens politician accused the police of cooking its crime statistics, a survey of more than one hundred retired NYPD higher-ups showed that cops—who are under constant pressure to produce happy-looking stats—have routinely fabricated or manipulated their data, since the crime analysis system was put into place in 1995. And the statistics they produce are the very same that Bloomberg quotes when he says the city is safe, and getting safer every year. “Those people in the CompStat era felt enormous pressure to downgrade index crime, which determines the crime rate, and at the same time they felt less pressure to maintain the integrity of the crime statistics,” said John A. Eterno, one of the researchers and a former NYPD captain. more ›

This story would be a lot cooler if our protagonist actually attempted to look anything at all like Paul Simon, and had Chevy Chase lip-syncing next to him. As it is, the NY Post reports a man over 6-feet-tall tried to steal the (5'3") singer's identity and withdraw money from his bank account. 54-year-old Rafael Ramos attempted to take out $4,300 from a Citibank on Broadway and West 86th Street using Simon's name, account and Social Security number, but the teller was suspicious since, you know, he looked nothing like one of the most famous musicians of our time. Ramos tried to escape the scene of his foiled caper but cops busted him. He was charged with attempted larceny and taken to the hospital after telling the officers he was depressed. more ›

A judge has refused to throw out the criminal case against a TV producer who is accused of trying to blackmail David Letterman. Robert "Joe" Halderman, the former CBS News producer, had allegedly demanded $2 million from Letterman in exchange for keeping quiet about a film script that dramatized Letterman's affairs with staffers. A lawyer for Halderman had argued that "his client simply had valuable information and wanted to get paid for it." In ruling against Halderman, Justice Charles Solomon wrote, "Defendant argues that the statute is overbroad as it applies to him because he has a constitutionally protected right to write a book or screenplay about a public figure. Since the defendant is not being prosecuted for authoring either a book or a screenplay, his constitutional right to free speech is not been impacted." more ›

The two women arrested for allegedly robbing a number of open houses on the Upper East and West Sides are being on bail of $30,000 each. Jessica Joyner and Jennifer Jones, charged with petty larceny, grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property, will be extradited to New Jersey authorities next week because they allegedly stole $75,000 worth of items during a Saddle River, NJ home's open house. The pair, who both live in Upper... more ›

Realtors and other open house organizers can breathe slightly easier: The police have arrested two suspects in the rash of open house robberies on the Upper East and West Sides. Upper East Side residents Jennifer Jones, 39, and Jessica Joyner, 33, were arrested and charged with petty larceny, grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property. The pair would head to open houses posing as interested buyers and one would distract the real estate agent... more ›