Two men from Queens have been arrested in connection with a string of burglaries that involved stalking patrons visiting the Americana Manhasset shopping center to later rob them, according to Nassau County police.
Jarry Gonzales-Ramos, 28, and Andres Quintero-Mendoza, 33, both of the same address in East Elmhurst, allegedly followed victims home from the Americana on at least four dates before causing hundreds of dollars in damage and stealing property, police said.
Both men are charged with several counts, including burglary, grand larceny and criminal mischief. The two were arraigned in Nassau County Court in Hempstead last Thursday.
No attorney information was available for either defendant.
Americana representatives were unavailable for comment at the time of publication.
On Oct. 5, 2018, the two men entered a Glen Head resident’s garage and stole two Louis Vuitton handbags, worth approximately $3,690, from a vehicle, police said.
On Nov. 13, 2018, the pair followed a 2017 Chrysler to a Mineola parking lot before breaking one window, causing $400 in damage to the car, and stealing a MacBook Air valued at $1,700, according to police.
On Dec. 2, 2018, the men broke the window of a 2018 Tesla parked in a Manhasset resident’s driveway and removed another MacBook Air worth $867, according to police.
On Jan. 31, the duo broke the window of a 2017 Acura in a Garden City Park parking lot and removed another Louis Vuitton handbag from the vehicle, worth $2,600, police said.
The two men were arrested by detectives in Queens last Wednesday evening.
The Nassau County burglary pattern squad worked in conjunction with several other squads in investigating the burglaries, including the NYPD Queens grand larceny task force, Suffolk County police and multiple New Jersey police departments.
