NYPD: Bronx Suspect Got Into 89-Year-Old Woman's Apartment Through Unlocked Door, Robbed Her In Bedroom
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The NYPD is trying to find a man accused of entering an elderly woman's Bronx apartment and robbing her.
It happened near Beck Street and Longwood Avenue at around 2:30 a.m. on Saturday, according to police.
The suspect allegedly got into the 89-year-old woman's ground-floor apartment through the back door, which was apparently unlocked, police said.
"It has been tough. I keep repeating it in my mind over and over again ... I'm not a good sleeper and I was about to start reading and I hadn't turned my light on yet and I saw someone come by my bedroom door with a flashlight. I thought it was my son," the victim told CBS2's Cory James exclusively.
But it was not her son, who lives upstairs.
When the suspect encountered the woman in her bedroom, he grabbed her arm, threw her on the bed and demanded money, police said. The victim gave him her purse, police added.
"I thought I could grab out a $20 (bill) and give it to him, but he took the whole purse. There was $100," she said.
The NYPD released this surveillance video of the suspect:
The suspect fled through the back door, leaving the woman recovering from hip and leg surgery with bruises on her leg and arm.
Neighbors said they were disturbed by what happened.
"It really is so disgusting to hear something like that," Lydia Santiago said.
"There's no courtesy, no respect for the elders," Juan Berrios added.
"I'm glad he didn't hurt me more. He bruised me, but he didn't do anything more. At 89, I could be hurt very badly and I wasn't," the victim said.
Police believe the suspect is in his 50s and approximately 6 feet tall.
The victim admitted that the door to her apartment was unlocked. She said it was a one-time mistake that she will not make again.
NYPD investigators want the public to take a good look at the suspect and if you know him you are asked to call the Crime Stoppers hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). You can also submit a tip via their website or on Twitter, @NYPDTips. All calls are kept confidential.
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