Police are warning residents of a Floral Park community to keep their vehicles locked after more than a dozen break-ins were reported within less than 2 miles from each other.
Corrine McDonald says she has been uneasy since someone broke into two cars parked in the driveway of her home. Chadwick Allison and two of his neighbors were also victims of the break-ins. A total of 13 cars were rifled through Friday night into Saturday.
Floral Park Police Commissioner Stephen McAllister says he believes that surveillance video taken around 4 a.m. Saturday shows a suspect who broke into eight cars parked in south Floral Park near Geranium Avenue. Five more vehicles were broken into about a mile away on Emerson Avenue on the north side of Floral Park, also Friday night into Saturday morning.
Police say it's not clear if the same man broke into the cars in both locations.
Some residents last month held a rally to voice their concerns over a hotel in nearby Bellerose, Queens that they say is housing the homeless and could bring crime to the area.
McAllister says he is sending the aforementioned surveillance video to the NYPD to see if it can be enhanced to get a better view of the possible suspect. In the meantime, McAllister urges all residents to keep their car doors locked.