Fake Messenger Steals iPhones Worth $58K From Chelsea Apple Store, NYPD Says

CHELSEA, NY — A thief posing as a messenger managed to escape Chelsea's Apple store with a haul of $58,000 worth of iPhones, police said.

The suspect went into the store on the morning of Sept. 14 and told a worker he was a messenger there to pick up some merchandise for delivery, police said. The employee bought the man's story and handed over three boxes containing the iPhones, police said.

Watch: Fake Messenger Steals iPhones Worth $58K From Chelsea Apple Store, NYPD Says

The man walked out of the store and fled in a white van, police said.

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Police released surveillance photos of the suspect Friday showing him patiently waiting for his haul in the Apple Store's lobby. The man is in his 40s or 50s with a dark complexion and bald head, police said. He is 5-foot-10, weighs about 195 lbs. and was last seen wearing a blue shirt, black sneakers and camouflage pants.

Anyone with information is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477).

Photo by NYPD