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CRIME BLOTTER: 4 Shoplifters Hit Bloomingdale's in Less Than a Month

By Shaye Weaver | July 25, 2016 5:35pm
 Bloomingdale's had four attempted thefts since June 29, police said.
Bloomingdale's had four attempted thefts since June 29, police said.
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DNAinfo/Shaye Weaver

UPPER EAST SIDE — Four shoplifters were caught trying to shoplift at Bloomingdale's in less than a month, according to the NYPD.

From June 29 to July 21, four thieves tried to steal $4,542 worth of merchandise from the 1000 Third Ave. store, near East 59th Street, authorities said.

Most recently, on July 21, Sayquan McKenzie, 25, called the store by phone and tried to purchase four pairs of Giuseppe Zanotti shoes using another person's credit card, police said.

A store employee told him he'd have to buy the shoes in person, and then called the true owner of the credit card, who confirmed that the suspect was not authorized to use it, according to police.

McKenzie then showed up at the store at 7 p.m. the same day and tried to buy the shoes, but was arrested for criminal possession of stolen property and grand larceny, identity theft and unlawful possession of personal identification information, authorities said.

It wasn't immediately clear how he got his hands on the credit card.

He was granted supervised release and is due back in court on Sept. 27. His attorney did not immediately return a call for comment.

On July 16, a thief who had been banned from the store for a previous theft tried to walk out of the store at about 5:16 p.m. without paying for various merchandise he had stashed in his bag, police said.

When a security guard approached him as he tried to leave the store, he fought with the guard, but no one was injured. The man — who has a "tremendous" number of prior arrests, according to police — was charged with burglary for violating the ban.

Then on July 14, Sandra Beaulieu, 27, tried to purchase Helmut Lang pants, a sweater and a coat, worth $2,200, with a fake credit card at 8:17 p.m., police said.

Beaulieu was arrested at the store and charged with attempted grand larceny and possession of a forged instrument, according to authorities.

She was released without bail and is due back in court on Sept. 26. Her attorney did not immediately return a call for comment.

And on June 29, Radika Rakhan, 25, snatched $10,122 worth of Aerin and Chanel perfumes from the shelves and put them into a bag. As she passed the registers without paying at roughly 6:20 p.m., the in-store security guard caught her, police said.

Rakhan, of Bay Ridge, was arrested for criminal possession of stolen property and petit larceny, according to authorities.

Police said she has at least three previous arrests for petit larceny from last year in which she stole $884 worth of fragrances from the Herald Square Macy's, $1,035 worth of perfume from the Times Square Sephora and $115 worth of perfume from the Sephora at 300 Madison Ave.

She pleaded guilty at her arraignment and was sentenced to six days in jail. Her attorney declined to comment.

Bloomingdale's did not return a request for comment.

Other notable crimes in this week’s blotter from the 19th Precinct include:

► Two men stole a woman's wallet from her purse on the 6 train roughly 2:50 p.m. on July 17. The 47-year-old victim was on a southbound 6 train by the doorway, when she noticed a man getting extremely close to her bag hanging on her left shoulder.

When the train opened at the 86th Street station, another man shoved into her, causing her to get very close to the suspect, who then ran off the train, squeezing between her and her daughter. When the woman got off train, she looked down and saw that her purse had been unzipped and her wallet, with her ID, MetroCard, insurance card and two credit cards, were stolen.

She canceled her cards, but the suspects tried to buy $800 worth of merchandise at the Best Buy at 1280 Lexington Ave. and tried to make a purchase at the CVS at 1294 Lexington Ave. at 87th Street. When police arrived at the CVS, they found the two credit cards but no suspects.

► A man wearing a button-down shirt punched a security guard at the Duane Reade at 1749 First Ave., near 91st Street, on July 16 at 9:30 p.m. The guard noticed the suspect removing items from a display and placing them into a plastic bag and confronted him. The suspect then punched the guard in the face, causing a cut, and fled the store. The guard was taken to a hospital. There were no immediate arrests.