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Serial Office Burglar Stole $100K in Laptops, Booze Over Past Year: NYPD

By Noah Hurowitz | October 7, 2016 11:14am | Updated on October 10, 2016 8:44am
 A serial burglar stole tens of thousands of dollars worth of laptops from Manhattan offices over the past year, police said.
A serial burglar stole tens of thousands of dollars worth of laptops from Manhattan offices over the past year, police said.
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DNAInfo/Noah Hurowitz

MANHATTAN — A serial burglar responsible for stealing tens of thousands of dollars worth of laptops and other goods from offices in Manhattan was caught when a vigilant employee of his last target called 911, according to a police report.

The yearlong burglary spree committed by Shakur Young, 46, came to an end on Sept. 28 when police caught him lingering inside an office at 158 W. 27th St. at about 8 p.m., according to a criminal complaint.

Police responded to the building after an employee at the office noticed a stranger lurking around and went outside to call 911, according to an NYPD spokeswoman. When officers arrived, they found Young inside the office wearing a large messenger bag, police said.

He tried to pass himself off as a bike messenger, but admitted he had nothing to deliver to that building, according to a police report. He was arrested on charges of burglary and trespassing. 

Once he was in custody at the 13th Precinct stationhouse, officers connected him to seven other burglaries dating back to August of 2015, thanks to surveillance footage from the scene of those crimes.

Young hit eight offices in total, stealing more than $100,000 worth of laptops from buildings in Chelsea and the Flatiron, according to a police spokeswoman.

“There must have been a lot of MacBooks for sale on Craigslist,” the spokeswoman said.

According to police, Young was responsible for the following burglaries:

► In his first and biggest heist, Young broke into an office at 114 W. 26th St. between Aug. 8 and Aug. 10, 2015, carting off more than $50,000 worth of laptops.

► On Aug. 21, 2015, Young broke into an office at 18 W. 18th St., where he took $11,000 worth of MacBooks and Lenovo laptops.

► On Oct. 5, 2015, he was seen on surveillance video breaking into an office at 460 Park Ave. South, where he stole more than $13,000 worth of Apple and Toshiba laptops.

► Young struck again on Oct. 12, 2015, when he broke into an office at 12 E. 32nd St. and carried away about $2,300 worth of Apple and Dell laptops. Young told a witness who saw him going into the building that he was a bike messenger and asked for directions to the mailroom, police said.

► On Dec. 4, 2015, he broke into an office at 72 Madison Ave. where he stole more than $3,400 worth of laptops.

► Sometime between Dec. 11 and Dec. 14, 2015, Young broke into an office at 145 W. 28th St. and swiped $15,000 worth of goods including red wine, bourbon, Beats by Dre headphones, cameras, sound equipment and laptops.

► On Sept. 9, 2016, Young broke into a building at 159 W. 25th St., forced his way into a third-floor office, and stole a number of laptops and headphones worth more than $15,000. An employee at that office reported seeing a strange man wearing a large backpack, but said he was only in the office for about five minutes, according to police.

Prosecutors charged Young with burglary, grand larceny and attempted burglary, according to a spokesman for the Manhattan District Attorney’s office.

He was released on Oct. 3 after paying $7,500 bond bail, records show.

Young’s lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment.