Drug Habit May Have Been Motive Behind Knifepoint Robbery Spree, Officials Say

Police believe a drug habit was the motive behind a Long Island man committing more than two dozen knifepoint robberies on Long Island and in Queens over the past couple months.

Khalif House, 24, of Hempstead, was arrested in Floral Park Wednesday after an extensive manhunt that began when he struck two Queens businesses Tuesday night, Nassau Police said at a Wednesday afternoon press briefing in Mineola.

House's charges have not been determined as the case is still under investigation, but police said he will be federally prosecuted.

A NYPD representative said House entered a Dollar Tree store in College Point at 9:50 p.m. Tuesday, approached a female cashier and displayed a large kitchen knife in his pocket. The cashier fought off House and he fled without any proceeds.

Police predicted that House would strike again nearby due to his robbery pattern, and police say he did. House robbed a Dunkin’ Donuts in Little Neck at 10:10 p.m., police say. Authorities responded to the scene and chased him for several blocks on foot before he got away.

Authorities located a late 2000 model gray Honda Accord nearby, which was believed to be the serial robber’s getaway vehicle, and discovered a 23-year-old Valley Stream woman inside the vehicle. Police said they believe the woman, who does not have a prior criminal record, assisted House in many, if not all, of the robberies. Police could not confirm whether she is suspected of being House’s getaway driver. She was arrested at the scene and authorities are still determining her charges.

House was officially placed under arrest Wednesday morning in a parking lot at 8 South Tyson Ave. after Floral Park Police responded to a report of two burglaries by a man who fit the description of the knife-wielding robber. House broke into one of the Floral Park homes and may have spent the night there to evade authorities, police say.

Police say they did not receive any tips from residents regarding the knife-wielding robber’s identity and House was not a person of interest because he did not have an extensive criminal record. House had a previous record of resisting arrest and other minor crimes, police say.

Nassau County Executive Ed Mangano said at a press conference that “[House] had a drug problem, perhaps heroin, and that may have been motivation for the robberies.”

The robberies are still under investigation. “There are still a lot of pieces to be tied together,” a NYPD spokesperson said.

After examining the robbery pattern, police say House may be responsible for several New York City-area robberies that occurred as early as February. The knife-wielding robber began targeting convenience stores in Nassau County on March 1 and expanded into Suffolk County and Queens. Police say he struck 13 stores in Nassau, four in Suffolk, and 10 in New York City.

The man is suspected to be behind the following Long Island robberies:

• Dunkin’ Donuts, located at 2062 Lakeview Road in New Hyde Park, on Tuesday, March 1 at 11:20 p.m. More info here.
• Dunkin’ Donuts, located at 156 Manetto Hill Road in Plainview, on Wednesday, March 2 at 9:25 p.m. More info here.
• Dunkin’ Donuts, located at 1068 Old Country Road in Plainview, on Monday, March 14 at 11:20 p.m. More info here.
• 7-Eleven, located at 758 Old Bethpage Road in Old Bethpage, on Thursday, March 17 at 12:20 a.m. More info here.
• Dunkin’ Donuts, located at 2675 N. Jerusalem Road in East Meadow, on Tuesday, March 22 at 9:41 p.m. More info here.
• Subway, located at 1341 Jerusalem Ave. in Merrick, on Friday, March 25 at 9:09 p.m. More info here.
• Dunkin’ Donuts, located at 3151 Lawson Boulevard in Oceanside, on Wednesday, March 30 at 9:35 p.m. More info here.
• Carvel, located at 1075 Montauk Highway in Copiague, on Tuesday, April 5
• Dunkin’ Donuts, located at 4886 Sunrise Highway in Massapequa, at 9:13 p.m. on Sunday, April 10. More info here.
• Carvel, located at 1551 Dutch Broadway in Valley Stream, at 9:33 p.m. on Tuesday, April 12. More info here.
• Carvel, located at 1344 Peninsula Boulevard in Hewlett, at 9:27 p.m. on Wednesday, April 13. More info here.
• Subway, located at 1201 Jericho Turnpike in New Hyde Park, at 9:48 a.m. on Monday, April 25. More info here.
• Carvel, located at 110 Commack Road in Commack, at 9 p.m. on Tuesday, April 26. More info here.
• GameStop, located at 1724 Veterans Memorial Highway in Islandia, on May 3
• Dunkin' Donuts, located at 238-19 Linden Boulevard in Elmont, at 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, May 17. More info here.
• 7-Eleven, located at 635 Powells Lane in Westbury, at 12:30 a.m. on Wednesday, May 18. More info here.
• Subway, located at 66 Sunrise Highway in North Lindenhurst, at 9:45 p.m. on Wednesday, May 18. More info here.

House struck businesses in Queens on May 11 and 23 and then picked up his robbery spree “intensely,” committing robberies on June 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6, police say.

According to authorities, House typically entered the stores, produced a large knife, demanded cash and then fled on foot. He was known to wait outside a business, sometimes while smoking a cigarette, until there were no customers present before he committed a robbery, police say. Additional surveillance footage of the robberies can be found here and here.

Six police jurisdictions worked together to end the robbery spree, including Nassau County Police, Suffolk County Police, NYPD, the FBI and Floral Park Police.

Images via NCPD