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Thief Trailed 88-Year-Old Man for 10 Miles From Casino Before Mugging Him

By Katie Honan | November 21, 2014 8:39am
  Gregory Hillman, 58, was charged with robbery, assault and grand larceny Nov. 7 after police say he stole $1,000 from an 88-year-old man who'd hit it big at Resorts World Casino.  Hillman is suspected of following the man for 10 miles from the casino before attacking him on Halloween.
Gregory Hillman, 58, was charged with robbery, assault and grand larceny Nov. 7 after police say he stole $1,000 from an 88-year-old man who'd hit it big at Resorts World Casino. Hillman is suspected of following the man for 10 miles from the casino before attacking him on Halloween.
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EAST ELMHURST — A determined ex-con followed an 88-year-old man more than 10 miles from the Resorts World Casino before beating him and robbing him of $1,000, according to police.

Gregory Hillman, 58, first spotted the victim after he hit it big in the South Ozone Park casino at 4:10 p.m. on Halloween and tracked him for more than an hour using a shuttle bus, the subway and another bus as the elderly man made his way home, police said.

Hillman, who has served time for robbery and grand larceny, then beat the victim and swiped more than $1,000 from him outside his East Elmhurst apartment, police said.

Surveillance video obtained by the NYPD showed Hillman lurking as the victim counted out $1,010 in winnings at Resorts World — and then followed him into the casino bathroom, according to the DA's office.

The victim told police he took the Resorts World Casino shuttle bus to Jamaica to catch a Manhattan-bound E train.

Police believe Hillman followed him to the 74th Street-Roosevelt Avenue stop in Jackson Heights, according to the DA's office.

The victim then stopped in a supermarket at 75th Street and Broadway, police said, and surveillance video shows Hillman behind him, leaving the store without buying anything.

Police said the victim boarded a Q47 bus at Roosevelt Avenue and Broadway and got off at 30th Avenue and 77th Street.

Hillman grabbed the victim from behind near his home 78th Street and 30th Avenue between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m., shoved both hands in his pants pockets and pushed him to the ground, causing him to black out when his head hit the cement, police said.

Hillman swiped the cash and a credit card out of his wallet, police said, and fled. The victim was treated at a nearby hospital for cuts, a bump and welts on his head.

Police arrested Hillman on Nov. 7, and he was charged with robbery, assault and grand larceny. 

His lawyer could not be immediately reached for comment. He's due in court on Nov. 21.

An email to Resorts World was not immediately returned.