BROWNSVILLE, Brooklyn (PIX11) — Police are searching for two suspects who posed as Con Edison employees and robbed a Brooklyn apartment Tuesday morning, authorities said.
The crooks knocked on the door of the apartment near 196 Rockaway Parkway in Brownsville just before 2:30 a.m., according to the NYPD. When a woman opened the door, the impersonators forced their way in and one suspect was armed with a gun, police said. The assailants stole a television and other items before running away, police said.
The woman suffered minor injuries and refused medical attention at the scene, according to the NYPD. There have been no arrests and the investigation is ongoing.
The victim was left afraid for her life after the robbery and was still shaken when she spoke to PIX11 News on Tuesday. She described the moments that led up to the robbery.
“I walked out of the elevator and heard someone coming down the stairs, so I went into my apartment. When I went into my apartment, I closed the door,” said the victim, who wished to have her identity concealed.
Before closing the door, she spotted two people in the stairwell who then put face masks on, she said. Moments later she heard a knock on her door and someone saying they worked for the power company.
“Then I heard somebody knocking and they said Con Edison. I said why is Con Edison here, I don’t have lights off. So they rushed in with a gun and everything,” she said.
The victim said after they shoved her back in, they put a gun to her head and told her not to make any noise. They gagged her and tied her wrists and then ransacked her apartment, also making off with her chain necklace and a wedding band, the victim said. They left the water running before getting away.
The victim, who suffers from mental and physical disabilities, was discovered after the water caused leaks in the apartments beneath her and they called the fire department. She is now afraid to be alone in her own home.
“I’m sorry, I’m so shaky right now,” the victim said.
Submit tips to police by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477), visiting crimestoppers.nypdonline.org, downloading the NYPD Crime Stoppers mobile app, or texting 274637 (CRIMES) then entering TIP577. Spanish-speaking callers are asked to dial 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
