83-Year-Old Mugged In Harlem Apartment Building, Police Say

HARLEM, NY — The NYPD is trying to identify a man who robbed an elderly woman in her Harlem apartment building, police said.

The suspect followed an 83-year-old woman into a residential building on West 117 Street and St. Nicholas Avenue on Wednesday morning, police said. Once inside, the man followed the woman into a building elevator, police said.

When the woman exited the elevator, the man approached her and knocked her down onto the ground, police said. The mugger snatched the woman's purse and fled the scene by running down a staircase and exiting the building, police said. The suspect discarded the purse in the stairwell but kept the woman's wallet and cellphone, police said.

The victim suffered pain and bruising to her head and was treated for her injuries at the scene of the robbery, police said.

Security cameras inside the building were unable to capture a clear photo of the suspect, as he was covering his face with a hood and his hands, according to police video. The mugger was last seen wearing a black hooded jacket, green cargo pants and tan boots.

Photo by NYPD