{"id":133621,"date":"2026-02-14T17:30:24","date_gmt":"2026-02-14T17:30:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/133621\/"},"modified":"2026-02-14T17:30:24","modified_gmt":"2026-02-14T17:30:24","slug":"here-are-5-things-to-know-about-the-crowbar-crew-targeting-staten-island-vehicles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/133621\/","title":{"rendered":"Here are 5 things to know about \u2018The Crowbar Crew\u2019 targeting Staten Island vehicles"},"content":{"rendered":"

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 Law enforcement officials on Staten Island are warning residents about a team of burglars, dubbed \u201cThe Crowbar Crew,\u201d which is targeting homes to steal high-end luxury vehicles. Officials have outlined the recent crime pattern and the increased police response. These are the five things to know<\/a>:<\/p>\n

1. \u201cThe Crowbar Crew\u201d is targeting the borough<\/p>\n

District Attorney Michael E. McMahon has named the perpetrators of a recent crime spree \u201cThe Crowbar Crew.\u201d This group uses a crowbar to force entry into homes, specifically looking for key fobs to steal luxury vehicles parked in driveways. The crime pattern, which includes about 10 incidents, occurred between Feb. 1 and Feb. 9. The crew has been active across the borough, with incidents impacting the North Shore, Mid-Island and South Shore, though not all of their attempts have been successful.<\/p>\n

2. Law enforcement has intensified its response\"CrowbarFrom the left, District Attorney Michael E. McMahon, Assistant Chief Melissa Eger, the NYPD borough commander, and Borough President Vito Fossella outside the 121st Precinct in Graniteville after a press conference discussing a crime pattern on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026.(Advance\/SILive.com | Luke Peteley)<\/p>\n

In response to the break-ins, the NYPD has significantly increased its presence in the affected areas. Assistant Chief Melissa Eger, the NYPD borough commander, announced that patrols have been boosted, particularly during overnight hours, and that more unmarked police vehicles are being deployed. She stated that detectives are working in close collaboration and \u201cwill not stop until this pattern is closed and the perpetrators are in custody,\u201d emphasizing the seriousness of the police effort to apprehend the crew.<\/p>\n

3. Officials are seeking public assistance and urging vigilance\"StatenThe NYPD is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying three men sought for questioning in connection to an alleged burglary pattern in the neighborhoods of Todt Hill and Dongan Hills on Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. These images were taken in the vicinity of a Dongan Hills residence that was allegedly broken into that morning.(Courtesy of the NYPD)<\/p>\n

Authorities are asking for the public\u2019s help to identify three men sought for questioning in connection with the burglary pattern. They have urged anyone with information to contact the NYPD\u2019s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS or submit tips online through the Crime Stoppers website<\/a>. Officials are also reminding residents to take preventative measures<\/a>, such as locking their vehicles and bringing keys and fobs inside, to deter potential thefts. The district attorney also urges anyone who observes any suspicious activity, to report that activity to their local police precinct.<\/p>\n

4. The crime pattern has already resulted in a successful high-end vehicle theft<\/p>\n

The crew has had some success in its efforts. During the early morning hours of Feb. 1, the burglars allegedly gained entry into a residence in Dongan Hills. According to the NYPD, they stole approximately $60 and a Range Rover key fob from the dining room. The perpetrators then fled the scene in the stolen vehicle, authorities allege. This incident highlights the crew\u2019s specific method of breaking into homes to acquire keys for targeted vehicles.<\/p>\n

5. The recent spike contrasts with a broader decrease in car thefts<\/p>\n

While this new crime pattern has created alarm, Borough President Vito Fossella noted that it comes after a significant overall decline in vehicle thefts on Staten Island. Citing data from the District Attorney\u2019s Office, he stated that grand larceny auto incidents fell by over 50% between 2022 and 2025, from 530 cases down to 258. According to the Deputy Commissioner of Public Information\u2019s Office, there were 514 grand larceny auto cases in 2022, 455 in 2023, 336 in 2024 and 244 in 2025. Fossella credited this dramatic decrease in part to the effectiveness of license plate readers. However, he stressed the seriousness of the recent \u201cspike\u201d and reiterated that \u201cevery stolen car is an issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

A draft of this story was generated using AI. It was reviewed, edited and approved by Advance\/SILive.com staff.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 Law enforcement officials on Staten Island are warning residents about a team of burglars,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":131798,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[9,24,63,134,136,135],"class_list":{"0":"post-133621","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-staten-island","8":"tag-new-york","9":"tag-new-york-city","10":"tag-nyc","11":"tag-staten-island","12":"tag-staten-island-headlines","13":"tag-staten-island-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133621","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=133621"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133621\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/131798"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=133621"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=133621"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=133621"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}