A 'tap and snatch' crew has been robbing New York City taxi drivers, exploiting the vulnerability of cell phones as digital wallets. The New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers is offering a $2,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the perpetrators.
Angry cab drivers are offering a $2,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of a 'tap and snatch' crew responsible for robbing 22 drivers across 22 different precincts in the last eight weeks. This crime spree , described by Fernando Mateo, the spokesman for the New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers , as 'unheard of,' often involves criminals seizing the driver's phone and using apps like Zelle or Venmo to drain their bank accounts.
\The perpetrators sometimes ask to see the driver's phone to input an address or change their destination, then flee with the device. Mateo emphasized the vulnerability of drivers in this situation, explaining that cell phones have become the modern equivalent of cash, and criminals are exploiting this. He stated, 'Cell phones today are the equivalent of cash, and criminals out there know this. So they're no longer putting a gun to your head and saying, 'Give me your cash'. Instead, they're saying, 'Give me your phone'. Then they either Zelle, Venmo or do whatever they have to do to take all the cash you have.' \Mateo believes this pattern should have been communicated to drivers by the NYPD as early as January after the third or fourth phone robbery. He criticizes the lack of timely information from the NYPD, stating, 'If the NYPD doesn’t tell us anything, there’s no way for us to communicate to our 30,000 drivers that are out there hustling every day and being robbed every day. We demand … the NYPD lets us know when patterns arise so that we can stop from going forward.' The union is urging the NYPD to share information about crime trends to enable drivers to protect themselves. Mateo also condemned bail reform, advocating for stricter punishments for criminals and greater protection for victims. He declared, 'It doesn’t matter if he’s black, Chinese, Spanish, white, whatever. If you commit a crime, you should get locked up.'
Taxi Drivers Robbery Crime Spree Zelle Venmo Bail Reform NYPD
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