CROWN HEIGHTS SHMIRA

Thank You letter to Shmira coordinator

admin — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 18:25:20 +0000

Subject: Shmira came to my house this morning

Hey Yossi,

I left the door to my house wide open!

My older sister who has Downs Syndrome has been visiting with me for a week. she was scheduled to leave from Newark yesterday and when we drove down from the Monsey area - we could not find the airport… it was like it was hiding so my sister could stay an extra day… so I re-scheduled her and the only flight they would give me without charging another full fare was 6:15 this morning. I was determined to get her there on time, but I still wanted a few hours sleep so we left the house at 4:15. She takes extra time at both check in and security. Two hours was definitely doable but I knew I had to stay focused to get everything to run smoothly.

My sister walks down stairs very carefully and slowly. I went to fetch the car and told her to take her time with the stairs. I made a mental note that I would have to go back up to lock the door. When I pulled up with the car and helped her get in – I was so focused on getting to Newark on time – I forgot about locking the door and did not even look back to notice it had been left totally open.

Apparently someone noticed the open door with lights inside and called Shmira. a few guys came and rang the bell and aroused my husband. They checked the house. Everything was OK. The whole house had been left wide open at 4:15 a.m.

I do not know who which Shmira members came to the house… PLEASE THANK THEM FOR ME… FOR GETTING OUT OF BED AND SAVING EVERYTHING I OWN! And if you know who called Shmira – please give them a Yasher Koach from me.

From a grateful Crown Heights resident

PS the trip to Newark went smoothly and we got to the gate just as they were starting to board. It was cool driving through the synchronized green lights along Canal Street before dawn without any cars and trucks in the way.

Attempted burglary in Crown Heights

admin — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 23:25:04 +0000

Wednesday, August 13, 2008 1:00am: A bochur sitting on his friends’ porch, across the street from his house on Balfour Place, noticed two African American teens approaching his house. They opened the gate surrounding his porch and one of them crept onto the porch and while still crouching, peered into the window. He turned and stated to his accomplice “the mom’s home, we can’t go in now”. Hearing this the bochur began crossing the street toward his house. The teens noticed the bochur and began to flee. The bochur started chasing the teens and called Crown Heights Shmira however he lost sight of them near the corner of Lefferts and Kingston Avenues.

Shmira responded within seconds and met the complainant at the corner and got a description and direction of flight. The information was transmitted over the radio so responding members could look out for them. One of the members spotted the teens on East New York Avenue heading towards Brooklyn Avenue. Numerous Shmira members took turns following the teens from a distance in unmarked cars.

Shmira flagged down a Police car and the Officers approached the teens. A Sergeant was called and after thoroughly questioning the both complainant and the teens, he decided to arrest one of the teens and charge him with criminal trespassing. The Sergeant then went with the complainant to his house to better understand what had taken place and to add any missing details to his report.

ULY School bus driver assaulted over a mirror

admin — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 03:27:41 +0000

Monday, August 11, 2008 2:45: A United Lubavitch Yeshiva school bus, occupied with children, was driving down the service lane on Eastern Parkway between Kingston and Albany Avenues when it passed a car that was parked at a fire hydrant. The bus driver thought he may have touched the car so he got out to take a look. The driver then went back into the bus for a moment and the owner of the car, thinking that he was leaving, began to make a scene. The bus driver stepped out of the bus and was confronted by the driver of the car. A dispute ensued, resulting in the bus driver’s foot being injured by the car owner.

The bus monitor called Crown Heights Shmira and Shmira members responded and called 911. Police Officers arrived and attempted to settle the situation while Hatzalah arrived and treated the bus driver for his injuries. The Officers concluded that the bus driver was not responsible for any damage. The bus driver declined to press charges against the owner of the car for the assault. The end result was the Officers ticketing the car for parking in front of a fire hydrant.

photos by crownheights.ch

Mugging on Crown Street

admin — Tue, 12 Aug 2008 12:56:37 +0000

Sunday, August 10, 2008 at approximately 8:00pm: A Bochur walking on Crown Street near Troy Avenue heard footsteps from behind and as he turned around he was hit. He saw 3 African American males and they all began hitting him and threw him to the ground while continuing to hit him. The muggers took his cell phone and wallet then fled on Troy Ave towards President Street. The victim made his way down Crown Street where he encountered a passerby who called Crown Heights Shmira.

Shmira responded immediately and the first member on scene asked the victim for a description and direction of flight. The member then transmitted the information over the radio for other members who were canvassing the area. The member then dialed 911 and handed the phone to the victim to talk to the Police operator. Police arrived very quickly and began questioning the victim as to the possibility of him identifying the three muggers. While the Officers were questioning the victim a Shmira member notified an Officer of three possible suspects that some members had spotted. The Officers took the victim and one of the Shmira members in a patrol car and drove to that location. Unfortunately the muggers were not found however the Officers took the victim down to the precinct where he spoke to detectives who are looking into this case with the utmost seriousness.

Muggings such as this have become somewhat common in the past few weeks. Crown Heights Shmira is requesting that all members of the community should be alert and aware of their surroundings at all times. Walk in groups and on the lighter side of the Street when possible.

Woman mugged on Eastern Parkway

admin — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 23:11:08 +0000

photo by chabad.info

Sunday, August 3, 2008 8:30pm:A Crown Heights Shmira member, patrolling on Eastern Parkway between Kingston and Brooklyn Avenues, witnessed two African American males snatch a bag from a passing woman. The two men were sitting on a bench drinking beer, when the unsuspecting woman passed by. The Shmira member immediately alerted other members of the condition and approached the two perpetrators requesting they remain seated until the Police arrive.

Additional Shmira members responded and 911 was dispatched. After roughly 30 seconds the perpetrators decided they did not want to wait around and began to run away. Shmira members and Officers of the 71^st Precinct responding from different directions closed in on one of the perps, on the south side of the street. The other perp ran across the street. Other Shmira members closed in on him and a passing E.S.U. truck was flagged down and the Officers approached.

Meanwhile the victim had disappeared, frightened by the encounter. Shmira members were on the phone with the victim however she absolutely refused to return to the scene to file a complaint. When the victim failed to come forward, the Police Officers on the north side of the street let the perp go free. The Officers on the south side of the Street however, arrested the second perp for an open container of alcohol and urinating in public.

IMPORTANT!

Criminals are known to return and repeat the offence in the same areas. If you are the victim of any crime, G-d forbid you must file a complaint and press charges against the criminal. If this is not done you can be placing other people’s lives in danger. The criminal will return and someone else might not be as lucky as you. There is no reason to be afraid since the perp will be behind a tinted window and will not be able to see you during a lineup. The only reason to be afraid is if you do not press charges and the criminal is still out there.

PHOTOS BY CHABAD.INFO

Erev-Shabbos chaos in Crown Heights

admin — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 16:01:42 +0000

Friday, August 1, 2008 approximately 12:00 noon: Crown Heights Shmira received a call that there was a yungerman (young man) being placed under arrest as the result of a dispute over a parking spot. Shmira members arrived on the scene just as the NYPD patrol car was pulling away with the yungerman, leaving his wife weeping on the side of the road.

Shmira transported the woman to the Station House and numerous senior members began making phone calls to different people to find out what this yungerman was being charged with and to inquire how they can insure that this yungerman will not be held at Central Booking over Shabbos. Many phone calls later, the yungerman arrived home right as Shabbos was coming in (the end of the 18 minutes).

Crown Heights Shmira would like to thank the person who because of his dedication to “the people” and to the community, pushed and did everything in his power and more, to make sure that the yungerman was home before Shabbos.

Advisory

Sometimes you may be one hundred percent correct but, you can still be doing the right thing by walking away. It is not worth it to spend time in Jail and thousands of dollars on Lawyers, just to prove a point. If you are involved in a dispute over a parking spot (or anything else) and you realize that the tension levels are escalating, you might be making the right choice by walking away.

Crown Height Shmira urges all member of the community to please make a Kiddush Hashem and walk away even when you are absolutely certain that you are correct. You might be saving yourself and many others a lot of heart ache.

School bus involved in accident

admin — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 06:04:00 +0000

Friday, August 1, 2008 approximately 1:15pm: Crown Heights Shmira received a call that a children’s School bus was involved in an accident with another car on the corner of Carroll Street and New York Avenue. Shmira members responded and Hatzalah was dispatched. Shmira members arrived on scene and were informed by witnesses that a silver car had tried to cut off the School bus as it made the turn from New York Avenue onto Carroll Street. There were no children on the bus and Thank G-d no one was injured.

Mugging on President Street, Crown Heights

admin — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 02:14:52 +0000

Thursday, July 31, 2008 12:30am: Crown Heights Shmira received a call that a Bocher (young student) was talking on his cell phone on President Street between Albany and Kingston Avenues when two African American males jumped him. One of them approached him from behind grabbing him around the neck while the other one grabbed his feet and together they knocked him onto the ground. One perp covered his mouth, asked if he had any money and uncovered his mouth for one moment to hear the answer, “no money”. They checked all of the Bochers’ pockets and when they failed to find anything fled across the Street toward Troy Avenue.

A by passer witnessed this, however failed to call Shmira until 10 minutes after the mugging and everyone had already left the scene. Shmira put in a lot of effort to locate the victim and were finally successful late Thursday night. Shmira members assisted the victim in filing the Police report and supplied a translator for the victim who only speaks Hebrew. The report was made and the victim was brought down to the precinct to speak to detectives who are looking into the mugging very seriously.

Crown Heights Shmira would like to emphasize the importance of filing Police reports. If you don’t report it, it’s as if it never happened. The NYPD cannot properly do their job if they are not made aware of the crimes that are occurring.

One Arrest for Hit and Run in Crown Heights

admin — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 15:50:03 +0000

Wednesday, July 30, 2008 7:45pm: Shmira received a call from a witness that an elderly man was hit by a car on the corner of Brooklyn Avenue and Crown Street. The caller stated that as he was passing by that corner he was flagged down by an African American in a blue convertible who told him what had transpired and pointed out the car, a black Acura. Seeing the elderly man on the ground the passerby took off after the Acura Chasing it until the corner of Brooklyn Avenue and Rutland Road where he managed to cut him off blocking his way. Another Good Samaritan helped by blocking the car from the rear.

Shmira members responded to both locations. When the first unit arrived on Crown and Brooklyn the he found the victim sitting on the side of a garden insisting that he was OK. The Shmira member, not wanting to take chances called Hatzalah to ensure he was really fine. Hatzalah arrived on scene, treated the victim and decided to transport him to Kings County Hospital to run some tests and insure that everything was fine.

Police Officers on the scene began to question the witnesses. The witness that was in the blue convertible gave the Officers a description of the car and its license plate number. The Officers communicated the information to the Officers who were on Rutland Road the officers, seeing that the plate number was a match, arrested the driver of the Acura.

Armed mugging in Crown Heights

admin — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 06:57:41 +0000

PHOTO BY JIMMY JUSTICE

Wednesday, July 30, 2008 approximately 12:40am: A young bocher walking along Crown Street between Troy and Schenectady Avenues noticed two suspicious looking African Americans walking nearby. As he passed the pair they jumped him and brandished a handgun demanding his money and began assaulting the bocher, inflicting scratches and bruises. The bocher immediately began to yell and scream on the top of his lungs while attempting to defend himself against the two perpetrators. A neighbor heard the screams and ran out of his house in his pajamas and joined in helping the victim fight off the perpetrators at which time the perpetrators began to run away toward Kingston Avenue.

The victim immediately called 911 and began chasing the perpetrators along with the neighbor and another witness. Multiple NYPD Officers responded very quickly and apprehended one perpetrator near Crown Street and Albany Avenue and the second one on Crown Street near Kingston Avenue. Shmira members patrolling in the area at the time assisted in searching for the weapon which was recovered in one of the gardens on Crown Street between Kingston and Albany Avenues. The perpetrators were placed under arrest and Officers transported the perpetrators, the victim and both witnesses to the station house.

Crown heights Shmira would like to thank the responding Officers for their extremely swift and great response and apprehending the perpetrators.

PHOTO BY JIMMY JUSTICE