Police seek thieves targeting the elderly on LI

Police are searching for two thieves who may be targeting elderly residents on Long Island. Officials say that back on Halloween, two suspects stole money from an elderly man who had just come out

News 12 Staff

Apr 7, 2016, 1:43 AM

Updated 3,087 days ago

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Police are searching for two thieves who may be targeting elderly residents on Long Island.
Officials say that back on Halloween, two suspects stole money from an elderly man who had just come out of a Smithtown bank.
They say one of the suspects stood inside the Chase Bank on Route 347 until he saw a man in his 80s enter the bank. They say after the man withdrew his money, the man drove two minutes away to the New York Community Bank, where police say one suspect distracted him and the other stole his money.
"He had it in the vehicle, and by one male distracting him, the other male removed the money from the car," says Suffolk Detective James Brierton.
After the suspects left, the victim noticed the money was missing from his car.
Brierton said the men will be charged with a hate crime when caught because he says they specifically targeted the elderly.
While this crime happened on Halloween, Brierton says they are asking for the public's help because there may be other victims.
A $5,000 reward is being offered for information leading to an arrest.
Anyone with information is asked to call Suffolk Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS.