Among the most valuable information magazine publishers can have is to know precisely who their average reader is. One man may have helped the folks over at Vibe magazine answer that question when he was arrested for absconding with seven copies of the magazine on March 31.
The thief, who visited 1st Avenue News at 1275 First Avenue, was observed for approximately 10 minutes through a security camera as he took the magazines, placed them in his left side jacket pocket and then tried to leave the store.
The advertising-sales department over at Vibe may be interested to know that the suspect hailed from 285 Riverside Drive-just the sort of upscale address they could pitch to potential advertisers. He was described as 37 years old, approaching his peak earning years, and even had what sounds like a certain off-beat fashion sense: black jeans, a red sweater and multi-colored sneakers. The cops charged him with petty larceny.
Newspaper Route
Delivering newspapers has traditionally been a baby step on one’s road to financial independence, but one homeless fellow may have taken his entrepreneurial zeal a little too far on April 1, when he filched copies of The New York Times, valued at a total of $105, from several locations.
Starting around 7 a.m., the thief helped himself to three bundles of the newspaper of record that were meant for the Starbucks (SBUX) at 1128 Third Avenue. A few minutes later, he absconded with a further 10 copies of The Times from a second Starbucks, this one at 1290 Third Avenue. And a few minutes after that, he was observed stealing 10 more papers belonging to the D’Agostino’s Supermarket at 1233 Lexington Avenue.
It was at that point that store workers stepped in and terminated the perp’s newspaper route. He was arrested and charged with petty larceny; all the papers were returned to their rightful owners.
Fashion Threat
Not everybody is a fan of Calvin Klein’s clothing line. But few take their distaste as far as the unknown perp who called in a couple of bomb threats to the designer’s Madison Avenue flagship store on March 22. The caller, who was described as having a deep voice, but not one distinguished by any sort of tell-tale accent, first phoned the store at around 3:45 p.m. and announced that a bomb would go off in 20 seconds. Since the time frame was so short, the store didn’t take the threat seriously.
However, the same person called again at 4:20 p.m. and, perhaps not wanting to be dismissed so lightly, gave the staff a 20-minute warning before detonation. Personnel at the store, located at 654 Madison Avenue, called 911. They also evacuated all their customers shortly before the NYPD’s Emergency Service Unit responded and canvassed the building for a bomb, with negative results.
A Calvin Klein employee told the police that similar threats had been made to the store over the previous six weeks.
Target Practice
Turning away undesirables at the door is a part of any self-respecting Manhattan bouncer’s job description. But those who get the boot at Scores, the high-end topless bar at 333 East 60th Street, seem to take it somewhat more seriously than do the riffraff who get punted at other nightclubs.
On March 18, at around 10 p.m., the club decided to deny admission to one gentleman who got into a verbal exchange with security personnel. A short time later, the same patron-this time accompanied by three buddies-tried to gain entrance but was rejected once again.
At that point, the suspect “made a hand gesture simulating a gun,” according to the police, and stated that he’d be back to shoot the bouncers who had denied him entry. As it turned out, it wasn’t an idle threat. At 11:24 p.m., shots rang out from the upper-level Manhattan-bound lane of the Queensboro Bridge. Five shots were fired in all toward the front-door area of Scores. No injuries occurred and the troublemakers got away, but an investigation is continuing. The perps were all described as white men in their 20’s.
Season Ticketless
You know it’s spring when you’re awakened by birdsong in the morning, the trees bud and people report their missing season tickets to the Yankee front office. That’s what happened on March 15, when the owners of Abbey Locksmiths at 1558 Second Avenue reported two missing tier-level 2001 season tickets worth $2,500.
The tickets had been residing in an envelope at the shop, but when the owners went to get them, the envelope was empty. No suspicious baseball fans were spotted at the locksmith’s, but Yankee ticket-replacement policy requires the legitimate ticket-holders to file a police report.