Mugger wrecks havoc on the Upper East Side

I know private school students in those area can be targets for nonviolent muggings: easily identified by their uniforms, wealthy, often carrying expensive gadgets, and young/scared enough to simply hand over their possessions when asked, without proof of a gun, knife, etc.

That is all NYC residents need is more violent people around. I sure hope the police find the mugger and stop him.

That's strange...isn't it the time of year when criminals are supposed to recede into the depths of their warm apartments?

Yes - there has been a lot of purse snatching and wallet stealing in Park Slope! I wonder what the deal is...

@Everyone Petty crime doesn't bode well for NYC I wouldn't want the crime ridden 70's to return for sure.

That's just fantastic. What the hell is happening to our city? It was almost boringly safe a year ago.

@ajadedidealist What's a nonviolent mugging? Is it when your purse-snatcher says please and thank you?

@uptowngirl I don't know if it's as bad as all that - petty crime happens all the time. I often hear stories of people's acquaintances being mugged, but it seems to me these things are only in the news when there isn't much else going on.

@everyone In addition to the purse snatching going on in Park Slope, someone thought it would be fun to torch some garbage cans a few blocks from where I live: http://www.brooklynpaper.com/stories/33/49/ps_firebomb_2010_12_3_bk.html Oy vey.

@NeverSleeps I know petty crime happens all the time but the neighborhood in which these muggings have taken place is known to be extremely safe. Gracie Mansion is located within it and even though Bloomberg doesn't live there there is much policing unless all this has changed recently with the cut backs in the NYPD and hence crime is on the rise.

@Neversleeps - what I mean is that muggers may not be armed or otherwise putting the children in actual harm (it might not even be a planned mugging), but simply are able to intimidate kids into giving up their possessions by asking for them - much like a schoolyard bully - since kids have often been taught not to resist muggings/take unnecessary risks, etc...

Whatever the reason or purpose is for the crime, this city needs to curb it somehow.