HARLEM — The 93-year-old great-great-grandmother whose $600 rent money was stolen by a man who snatched it from inside her bra said the thief would have gotten a beating if she'd been healthier.
"He only escaped because I have an injured hand," Maria Vasquez, who uses a wheelchair after suffering three strokes, said Friday. "If I was healthy, I would've grabbed him right there and punched him."
Vasquez was in Regines clothing store at 176 E. 116th St., near Third Avenue, about noon Wednesday when Broyoan Lopez reached into her bra and snatched an envelope full of cash before fleeing, police said.
"He was standing right next to me. He just stuck his hand inside and grabbed it," said Vasquez, who has more than 90 grandkids and emigrated from the Dominican Republic in 1983.
Lopez, who lives in Park Slope, fled the scene but was arrested near his home Friday morning. He was charged with robbery, grand larceny and criminal possession of stolen property, police said.
"I feel better now that they arrested him. I want them to punish him to the fullest extent of the law," Vasquez said.
"I want to see him, to give him advice. He's too young. ... He shouldn't be robbing vulnerable people."
Vasquez thinks Lopez followed her from a nearby Banco Popular, where she'd withdrawn the $600, into the store where she wanted to buy sandals with her aide.
On Friday afternoon, Vasquez, who turns 94 next month, returned to Regines where the owner, Josh Cohen, 49, gave her $600 and the pair of sandals she'd originally come in to buy.
"I'm sorry for what happened to you. I hope this is going to make you feel better," Cohen said.
"Thank you. God bless you," she replied.
(DNAinfo/Trevor Kapp)
