By Jeff Lipton
Cars were stolen from the parking lot at FPL Company, 3539 Hampton Rd., on successive Thursday mornings.
The first theft took place on Oct. 16 at 10 a.m., when a 1986 Oldsmobile Cutlass was swiped from the lot, according to a 4th Precinct police report. A week later, on Oct. 23, at about 11 a.m., a 1982 Oldsmobile Delta was stolen from the mailing company parking lot. Company employees said they believe it may be more than a coincidence.
“It's pretty scary,” said one woman, who answered the phone at the mailing business. “It seems like someone is scoping out the lot.
“It's devastating to see theses guys' faces when they go out there and come back after finding out their car is gone,” she added.
The wife of the victim whose car was stolen on Oct. 23 said she is extremely upset about the theft. “We live in Oceanside on the Baldwin Harbor border and that car was outside every single night and nothing happened to it,” said the woman, who identified herself only as “Sondra.”
She said one minute her husband looked out from his window and saw the car was there and the next minute it was gone.
“You do feel violated,” she added. “I'm very, very upset about the whole thing. But, I'm more upset that police may not care to try to find it.”
The car stolen a week earlier belonged to his manager, and it's believed to be a collectible. He also had a set of golf clubs and a rug in the vehicle.
“I never leave anything in my car, only my registration and my insurance,” said Sondra, adding that she always tries to take precautions against identity theft by keeping the vehicle free of personal information. She said the car thief or thieves appeared to be pros because no one apparently saw them swipe either vehicle, in broad daylight. From what she has been hearing and reading, she said it seems as though car thefts are on the rise in Oceanside and the surrounding communities. “I don't
understand why we are seeing so much crime with cars,” she said. “I don't understand how they could make so light of it.”
But, according to 4th Precinct statistics, auto theft has been on the decline in 2008. From Dec. 25, 2007 to Aug. 27, 2008, police reported 54 car thefts, compared with 68 for roughly the same period the previous year — a 21 percent decrease.
The year before that, the number of car thefts in the 4th Precinct jumped from 67 to 90 for the same eight-month period. In addition to Oceanside, the 4th Precinct takes in Island Park, East Rockaway, the Five Towns, Atlantic Beach, Lido Beach and Point Lookout. “It's terrible, it's just a big inconvenience,” said Sondra, who also has a Camry and a Corolla. “We used the Olds to do neighborhood errands and my husband took it to work everyday.”
The owner of the mailing company was not available for comment.
Anyone with information on either theft is urged to call 4th Precinct detectives at (516) 573-6452.
Comments about this story? Jlipton@ liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 213.
