BY ROBERT POZARYCKI | Cops need the public’s help in finding a crook who recently went looking for backpacks out of basements in Soho and Midtown Manhattan.
On Oct. 7, the NYPD released video footage of the perpetrator responsible for the burglary pattern, which began in August with a break-in at a building on 9th Avenue near West 39th Street in Midtown.
Law enforcement sources said the thief got into an open cellar door at the location at 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 25. Once inside, he removed two backpacks belonging to employees at a nearby business, then fled the scene in an unknown direction.
A month later, cops said, the cellar-bound crook got into the basement of Summers restaurant at 169 Thompson St. in Soho at 1 a.m. on Sept. 26.
After entering the cellar through an open door, authorities said, he grabbed a 26-year-old employee’s backpack, which contained the victim’s property, and fled in an unknown direction.
Officers from the 6th and 10th Precincts are investigating the incidents.
The video footage police released on Monday night shows the suspect inside the Midtown location.
Anyone with information regarding his whereabouts can call Crime Stoppers at 800-577-TIPS (for Spanish, dial 888-57-PISTA), visit the Crime Stoppers website or send a direct message on Twitter @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are kept confidential.
