ROOSEVELT ISLAND — A teenager was arrested for breaking into a pair of apartments on Roosevelt Island and trying to hit another in a cluster of buildings on Main Street, authorities said.
Anthony Long, 17, of Roosevelt Island, was arrested for two of the incidents and also charged with attempted burglary, police and prosecutors said.
There have been a string of eight burglaries on the island since the beginning of the year, most of them occurring in the large Roosevelt Landings complex on Main Street, authorities said.
Long has only been linked to two of them, police said.
In many of the incidents, apartments with unlocked doors were targeted for cash, purses and small electronics including laptops and tablets, police said. In at least one case, the victim was home when the burglar entered the apartment.
Long was still in custody at the time of the most recent incident, which occurred on Monday, authorities said. His lawyer declined to comment.
During the Monday break-in, a suspect entered an apartment at 625 Main St. through an unlocked front door about 12:30 p.m., according to the NYPD. The thief took an Apple electronic device worth $600 while the tenant was inside, police said. No injuries were reported.
Six of the burglaries occurred in two buildings in Roosevelt Landings, which stretches from 510 to 580 Main St. on the east side of the street. There were three break-ins at 540 Main St. in January, two at 510 Main St. in February, and another at 536 Main St., officials said.
Long was arrested for just two of the burglaries at the complex, at 510 and 536 Main streets, officials said.
One of the burglaries outside the complex, at 531 Main St., was recorded by the public safety arm of the Roosevelt Island Operating Corporation, though the NYPD had no record of the incident.
During the March 10 burglary at 536 Main St., Long entered though a ground-floor window after tampering with the chain lock on the apartment's door, police said. He stole $1,000 in cash, as well as an IBM and Apple laptop, police said. Just over a week earlier, on or about February 28, he broke into an apartment at 560 Main St. and stole unspecified items, the DA added.
The teen was indicted on charges of burglary, petit larceny and criminal possession of stolen property for the two incidents, according to the Manhattan District Attorney's Office. In addition, prosecutors charged Long with attempted burglary for trying to break into an apartment at 576 Main St. on March 11.
At a March meeting of the Roosevelt Island Residents Association, Deputy Inspector Kevin Maloney of the 114th Precinct told attendees that the burglary pattern was still active, according to local blog the Roosevelt Islander. The precinct covers several neighborhoods of northwestern Queens, as well as Roosevelt Island.
The police have reportedly stepped up patrols and security surveys with the Roosevelt Landing residential complex. They have also distributed fliers on burglary prevention to island residents.
