Mamaroneck Town Police Address Recent Crime

The cries of Mamaroneck Town residents have not fallen on deaf ears. 

In response to a request for more answers from town officials after a recent spate of burglaries in the area, local police presented the community with a comparison of crime statistics in the area since 2010 as well as a list of safety tips, a copy of which can be accessed by clicking to the right of this article.

“We have not had the rash of burglaries that they’ve had in the Village of Larchmont,” said Town Supervisor Nancy Seligson, clarifying the sometimes-hazy border between where the unincorporated town ends and the village begins.   to village residents after seven burglaries occurred between Thanksgiving and the beginning of January, setting off a rush of panic in the area; these incidents are still under investigation.

According to Detective Sgt. Matthew Mehlrose of the Town of Mamaroneck (TOM) Police Department, burglaries in the town dropped from 17 in 2010 to 11 in 2011. Of the burglaries in 2010, eight were forced entries into residential homes, six were entries from open windows or doors and the remaining were entries into vacant rooms in apartment buildings. In 2011, three were forced entries into residences, three were entries from doors reported as locked and five were in apartments. So far in 2012, there have been two reported burglaries.   Several individuals—identified only as two career criminals from Port Chester and New Rochelle—were arrested recently in connection with some of the burglaries.

“These people are coming from the outside—they’re not the person that lives down the street,” said Det. Jason Florkowski.

Five robberies occurred in 2010, compared with only two in 2011. According to Patch records the incidents : on Jan. 27, 2010, a 43-year-old woman reported being approached on West Garden Road in broad daylight by a man wielding a gun. And, on Aug. 29, 2010, a 17-year-old boy reported an iPod and cell phone taken forcibly by two men while he was standing in front of a Nancy Lane home.  Shortly following that incident on Aug. 31, 2010, a 25-year-old man reported being assaulted and robbed of his cell phone on the 2500 block of Boston Post Road.  Five men were arrested in connection with the late August crimes in September 2010.

In 2011, a 17-year-old boy was robbed at knifepoint by five men as he walked down Weaver Street at 12:15 a.m. on Aug. 18. His iPhone and wallet were stolen.  The five men were arrested in September 2011 in connection with that crime and a similar incident in where a boy was beaten up for his iPhone.  The other incident occurred when a was .

And, in on Jan. 17, 2012, a man was as he walked home on Glenn Road from the train station. 

What are the police doing to combat further crime?  Although departments do not typically release detailed information that could compromise an investigation, they did divulge some of their latest efforts: extra patrols in certain areas with officers in plain clothes and in unmarked vehicles as well as communication with other jurisdictions that may have had similar incidents. 

On Thursday night, two police cars were parked in the commuter lot at the Larchmont train station at 9:45 p.m. as people exited the platform toward their cars or continued on toward their homes in the town or village.

And, town residents also have another service available to them called the “Dark House” program.  While away on vacation, homeowners can request that an officer come to their house and survey the exterior to check for signs of unusual activity. 

“You get these personal services you pay very high taxes for,” said Florkowski, adding that the arrival time for officers is often just a few minutes.

New York Crime Stoppers are offering a reward of up to $2,500 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of people responsible for several robberies that occured in Pelham on Jan. 12 and Jan. 31; in the Town of Mamaroneck  on Jan. 17 and in New Rochelle on Jan. 29.  In each incident the perpetrator was described as a black male, 5'10"-6'0", medium build, wearing a black ski mask and dark clothing.  To report a tip, please call 1-866-313-8477.