By Gabriela Resto-Montero
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — Police are searching for a serial burglar accused of robbing 17 restaurants and beauty salons around Manhattan in the past two months.
The man, whose photo was released by the NYPD Thursday, is described as "heavyset" with a long, dark ponytail, last seen wearing a hat and glasses. He allegedly carried out his robberies by breaking through the metal security gates of businesses after they've closed for the night and raiding the cash registers inside, according to police.
The 17 burglaries took place between March 3 and April 16 and spanned the borough from West 16th Street and Seventh Ave. to a host of locations on the east side of Manhattan from East 23rd Street to East 70th Street, police said.
No one has been injured in the burglaries and most of the break-ins have happened in Murray Hill and Gramercy around Second and Third avenues, police said.
On the two occasions where the burglar has ventured to the West Side, he allegedly broke into the Chris Mitchell Studio Beauty and Nail Salon on Seventh Avenue in Chelsea and its next-door neighbor, Legend Bar and Restauarant.
The thief made off with an unidentified amount of cash from those burglaries.
With the exception of a few break-ins at salons and one flower shop, the suspect has targeted mainly Italian and Chinese food restaurants, according to police.
Anyone with information on the robberies is asked to contact Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-8477.
