8 suspects sought in Queens and Bronx burglaries and robberies, police say

Police were searching Wednesday for eight suspects in three separate strings of burglaries and robberies targeting residents and businesses in the Bronx and Queens.

According to NYPD officials, three people stole thousands of dollars from a grocery store, a nail salon and another shop that all share the same building on Queens Boulevard and 42nd Street in Sunnyside.

All three incidents took place on March 2 around 2 a.m., police said. The burglars snuck into each shop, damaged the ATMs and made off with more than $20,000 cash in total. Officials said the burglars fled in a dark Mercedes-Benz GLE with a New Jersey license plate.

Further east in Queens, police said they were looking for three men who had arranged to meet with victims to buy and sell items, only to beat and rob them instead.

All three incidents took place between Feb. 14 and Feb. 22, from Flushing to Fresh Meadows, police said. According to officials, one of the victims went to a local hospital with minor injuries after he met the robbers at Barclay Avenue and Kissena Boulevard, where they pepper-sprayed him in the eyes, broke his nose and took his bag, which contained money and a cellphone.

In another confrontation, the suspects stole a Rolex from a victim who met them at a building near 188th Street and 64th Avenue to sell the watch, according to the NYPD. They punched him in the face before fleeing in a car toward the Horace Harding Expressway. They also assaulted another man who met them on Smart Street and 45th Avenue, stealing his money and phone, police said.

Meanwhile, in the Bronx, police said they were looking for two people who snatched chains from multiple victims while riding by on a bike. Officials said six incidents happened from Feb. 25 to March 6, all between 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Most occurred in Highbridge and Morris Heights, with two others taking place near West Farms. None of the victims, who ranged in age from 17 to 64, were injured, the NYPD said.

Robberies, burglaries and grand larcenies — thefts where the total value of stolen goods exceeds $1,000 — have all decreased in Queens and the Bronx so far this year compared to the same period last year, NYPD data shows. Burglaries are down by single-digit percentages in both boroughs, while other thefts are down by double-digit percentages.

This is a developing story based on preliminary information from police and may be updated.