WINDSOR TERRACE — Armed robbers struck two local businesses within minutes of each other earlier this month, police said.
Two masked men with guns held up Cohen's Fashion Optical on Seventh Avenue and Seventh Street in Park Slope at 8:23 p.m. on April 14 and two armed robbers struck Windsor Wine Merchants on Prospect Park West and 16th Street at 8:48 p.m. the same night, police said.
The NYPD did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether the two incidents were related.
The robbery at the wine shop shocked customers in Windsor Terrace, where serious crime is rare, said a wine shop manager who preferred not to be named. He added that locals generally feel safe in part because Windsor Terrace "is a cop-heavy neighborhood," with police often seen socializing at Farrell's bar or getting a bite to eat at Terrace Bagels.
"It's a safe neighborhood," the manager said. "Even though we're going to take measures to make our store safer, we feel safe in this neighborhood. We see it as a spontaneous, isolated incident."
The robbers entered the store and left with cash from the register about a minute later, the manager said. The men asked the woman behind the counter to empty the register, then told her to get on the floor and fled immediately, the manager said. No customers were in the store at the time.
The holdup was the first time the wine shop had been targeted by armed robbers since it opened in 2008, the manager said.
Police from the 72nd Precinct will host a workshop for business owners about how to improve security at 11 a.m. on Tues. April 28 at Shepherd's Hall at Holy Name Church, 245 Prospect Park West. For more information, contact Community Affairs Officer LoBosco 718-965-6320.
