Around 3:35 a.m., the owner of a Todt Hill mansion heard a noise and found a burglar wearing all black—and a mask and gloves—in his walk-in closet. The Staten Island Advance reports that the burglar took many high-end watches, said, "Get out of my way" and ran past the homeowner who was looking for his gun. Then, "The homeowner went to the front of the house and fired a shot, then to the rear, where he fired two more, basically to make sure the burglar kept on running, the [police] source said." Uh-huh—it's totally got Staten Island Ninja written all over it! more ›

Even the police set up a "massive dragnet" to find a thief who tried to steal a safe from home in Staten Island's Todt Hill section, the thief still managed get away! The Staten Island Advance explained in spite of a "a helicopter with heat-sensing equipment as well as uniformed and plainclothes officers," the cops still lost track of a suspect who had returned to 70 Beebe Street to complete the task of stealing the safe. A cop reportedly said on the police radio, "I hear him in here! I can't find him! It's pitch black!" but the perp may have escaped by jumping out of a second floor window. The thief is also suspected in five other break-ins. more ›

Staten Island's Ninja Burglar struck again late last week, slipping furtively and unseen into a doctor's home on Melbourn Rd. in the Castleton Corners section of the borough. No one was home at the time and he scored big in his 19th break-in since May of last year, making off with $20,000 in jewelry. The theft comes just a little over a month after the man in black struck twice in quick succession in late November. more ›

A woman was robbed in her Staten Island home by a man clad in black on Monday morning but authorities do not think it's the Ninja Burglar. A police source told the Staten Island Advance, "There are burglaries committed every day and everybody is wearing black out there." more ›

We've admired the Wee Ninja from Shawnimals ever since we were looking for a visual to go with posts about the Staten Island Ninja Burglar. Wee Ninja is actually not a criminal in Shawn Smith's Ninjatown - Wee Ninjas only train, harvest Stealth Wheart, and fight the Wee Devils (or something along those lines). And now it turns out that there's an event at My Plastic Heart on Forsyth Street this Friday, Keep it... more ›

Just in time for the holidays - and holiday presents - the Ninja Burglar has returned! The nefarious nighttime nuisance that had Staten Island residents on their toes after hitting sixteen homes (some with homeowners in them) robbed two homes in the Todt Hill neighborhood over the weekend. The Advance reported that the "elusive serial bandit" first robbed a mansion on Louisa Lane. He entered through a second floor terrace door - while the... more ›

A Todt Hill couple's home was broken into by the infamous Ninja Burglar last night. The craziest part: The wife ran into him. The Staten Island Advance reports that Mary Ann Carlo bumped into the intruder. Carlo said, "I started screaming, 'The Ninja is here! The Ninja! The Ninja!'" The Advance has the details AND gets a plug:At about 10:30 p.m., Mrs. Carlo turned off the television and headed downstairs toward the bedroom, where her... more ›

Real Estate site The Real Deal has detailed the priciest streets or micro-neighborhoods to live on in each of the five boroughs of NYC. Ironically, except for Manhattan, the most expensive streets in New York's four other boroughs lean heavily towards suburban idyll rather than luxurious urbanism. But we suppose that has always been an appeal of the outer boroughs: the ability to escape Manhattan's teeming population density. If you recently came into a large sum of money, here's where you should be house-hunting, in alphabetical order. more ›

- And finally, a hearty welcome to the NYU Class of 2010. Walk faster. more ›