GN resident arrested in Queens thefts

Dan Glaun

A Great Neck man is allegedly at the center of a string of felony thefts and misdemeanors across three counties, according to criminal charges filed by district attorneys in Nassau, Queens and New York City.

David Mintz, 30, was arrested Nov. 3 and accused of stealing from five businesses on a strip of Northern Boulevard near the Little Neck Parkway from Aug. 17 through Nov. 2.

The stolen goods ranged from a wine bottle to $8,000 in cash to a desktop computer, according to criminal complaints. 

The Queens District Attorney’s office is prosecuting Mintz with multiple counts of burglary, grand larceny, petty larceny and criminal possession of stolen property.

Mintz is also facing prosecution from the for crawling under turnstile at a Greenwich Village subway station, police said. NYPD transit officer Yeuris Mejia arrested Mintz on misdemeanor charges of theft of service and criminal trespassing, as well as criminal possession of a weapon after allegedly finding him in possession of a box cutter.

“I recovered a box cutter from the defendant’s pocket,” wrote Mejia in the criminal complaint. “The defendant stated in substance to me: ‘I have it for protection.’”

And in Nassau, Mintz is charged with a misdemeanor count of petty theft after allegedly taking $500 from behind the bar at Potter’s Pub in East Meadow.

The thefts with which Mintz is charged in Queens allegedly took place on the same stretch of Northern Boulevard, primarily when the businesses were empty after closing.

Mintz’s allegedly stole an iPod, a laptop computer and a wine bottle from Pawz and Clawz, a Northern Boulevard pet grooming service, in the days following Hurricane Sandy.

The victim told police that he locked and exited the business at about 2 p.m on Oct. 31 and, upon his return the morning of Nov. 2, discovered the property missing. The victim also said that he viewed security camera footage that showed Mintz walking through Pawz and Clawz during that time, drinking a bottle of wine that the victim said was stored in the business’ basement.

Man Chan Sze, the owner of Red Lotus Bakery on Northern Boulevard, told police that she found $8,000 and a laptop computer missing when she returned to her store the morning of Oct. 25 after locking up the night before, according to another criminal complaint. 

NYPD officer Michael Grimm said he saw security tape of Mintz taking the laptop from Red Lotus and walking away. 

Sze told the Great Neck News that security camera footage showed Mintz taking the money at 9:30 p.m. on Oct. 24 and then breaking in again the next night.

“He’s so greedy – he knows I still have a couple hundred dollars there and came back at 12:30 a.m. [on Oct. 25,]” Sze said.

Sze said Mintz entered through a back window after unscrewing the frame. 

Mintz also allegedly has a sweet tooth. Sze said that, in addition to $8,000, a handful of cream from one of the bakery’s cakes was missing as well.

Mintz is charged with another robbery between the night of Oct. 24 and the next morning. Mintz allegedly stole a television and $100 cash from Angel Face and Beauty Spa and was identified in surveillance footage by police, according to the criminal complaint.

In another Queens burglary, Mintz allegedly stole a laptop and a desktop computer from Ashcan Art Studio after closing on Aug. 17, and according to the complaint was identified by an employee of the business in security footage.

Mintz is also accused of committing petty larceny at the San and Deul Korean barbecue restaurant on Sept. 1. 

Employee Yonsoon Reipolsky told police she saw Mintz reach over the counter and take about $300 dollars from the cash register, according to the criminal complaint.

And on the afternoon of Aug. 1, Mintz allegedly stole credit cards and cash from an employee at 260-19 Nassau Boulevard, the site of the Little Neck Nursing Home.

The employee told police that she left her wallet and handbag at her desk, and upon returning found her property missing. The employee reported that she found her wallet in the parking lot of her work with three credit cards missing.

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