Fed up city store owners have offered a $5,000 bounty to capture brazen thieves known as the “Midnight Smashers” who carried out 49 daring robberies and snatched ATMs at stores across the Big Apple. is applied.
United Bodega of America says its three-man crew wreaked havoc at dozens of delis, destroying ATMs and fleecing with tens of thousands of dollars in less than three months. “However, hard-working business owners are reeling from the financial and emotional costs.” ”
“These attacks are unlike anything we have seen before,” UBA spokesman Fernado Mateo said.
“It is unacceptable that small business owners, the backbone of our city, are targeted like this. They deserve better protection, and it's time for city government to step up.” he said.
According to the NYPD, the trio stole cars and used them as getaway vehicles between September 19 and December 26 throughout Upper Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens.
Police said they entered the warehouse, looted an ATM and other items, and fled.
Wild video captured two people removing wires from an ATM and taking a cash machine from American Digi Bazaar and Deli in East Elmhurst on Dec. 2.
Two months ago, the crew fled with $40,000 in cash from an ATM in two robberies, the NYPD said.
Police said the suspect has not yet been captured.
Outraged, UBA called on Mayor Eric Adams, Governor Kathy Hochul, and the NYPD to “prioritize the safety of bodegas and small businesses,” while increasing police presence and using panic buttons to ensure safety. He said stronger measures and support for armed protection of bodega workers would help stop the attack. Future attacks.
“We are tired of being victimized again and again,” UBA President Radames Rodríguez said in a statement.
“Bodegas are a lifeline for many communities, and these criminals are tearing apart our lives and threatening our safety.”
“Why aren't these people caught?” he added.
