QUEENS — A burglar used fire escapes to break into four apartments in Forest Hills over the past few weeks, swiping cash, Apple electronics and jewelry, police said.
The incidents occurred along Queens Boulevard during late afternoon and early evening and in most cases the windows were left open and unlocked, police sources said.
Police said the burglary spree began when the suspect hit the same building, located on Queens Boulevard, between 67th and 68th drives, twice.
The first apartment was burglarized between Aug. 22 and Sept. 8, when the owner was away on vacation. The thief climbed the fire escape in the rear of the building and entered through the kitchen window, which was left open, police said.
The suspect stole jewelry and then left through the front door, which the owner found unlocked after returning, according to the NYPD.
Another apartment in the building was burglarized on Sept. 24, when the suspect stole about $2,000.
Then on Oct. 6, the burglar stole $3,000 and an iPad from another apartment on 71st Road and Queens Boulevard.
The suspect also struck on Oct. 12, breaking through a rear window into an apartment in a building located on 71st Avenue, between Queens Boulevard and 110th Street, to steal watches, jewelry and a MacBook Pro, police said.
The pattern comes on the heels of an arrest in September in a series of burglaries targeting Forest Hills homes in a small area around Metropolitan Avenue. Since that arrest, burglaries in that area stopped, police sources said. Police also recovered more than 200 pieces of jewelry and electronics from the suspect’s house, including items stolen from four Forest Hills homes.
The 112th Precinct, which covers Rego Park and Forest Hills, urged residents to lock their windows when they leave and to call 911 if they see anyone on the fire escapes to their building.
The NYPD also offers free security surveys in which they assess security of a home or apartment and make recommendations on how to improve it.
