Sunnyside Pharmacy Owner (Photo: QueensPost)
Jan. 8, 2011 By Christian Murray
Two masked men entered the Sunnyside Pharmacy on Skillman Ave. on Nov. 15 and approached the owner with a knife.
The two men then blindfolded the proprietor, sat him down in a corner of the store, and then began riffling through the prescription drug section. They then stole Oxycodone, a crude substitute for heroin, and took off with cash.
“These people knew me and the store,” the owner of the pharmacy, located at 48-11 Skillman Ave., said. “They knew I wouldn’t have that many customers in the store at 5:40 pm when it happened.” The police—then detectives—arrived shortly after the robbery, he said, but he has not heard from them since.
Today, a police spokesman said no arrests have been made in the case.
Meanwhile, across the street at 48-06 Skillman Ave., Victor Alvarez, the owner of Via Classic Emporium, said his store was burgled in the early hours of Jan. 1. “They took my computer, photo equipment, antique jewelry and other items—totaling more than $10,000.” He added the burglars also trashed his store, up ending china cabinets and smashing lamps.
No arrests have been made in this case either, police said.
Alvarez said that he was now in the process of installing video cameras as a means to deter criminals.
Meanwhile, to enter the Sunnyside Pharmacy these days, customers must ring a doorbell before they can enter. “I put this in shortly after the attack,” the pharmacy owner said.
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8 Comments
My frustration is with the police, not with you. And I believe that many of the crimes are being committed by our local punks who are very sure that they will not be caught.
Mallory, the police did not tell the community at the police precinct meeting about this incident– hence the delay in it being reported. Furthermore, it was particularly serious.
Typically, I would agree with you that a 7-week old crime would fall into the “old news” category.
Why are we hearing about this in January????
Yes, but where are the photos from Chase being posted? They should be in the New York Post or on New York One. If I were the 108th, I would take a good look at our local punks to see where the were when the pharmacist was robbed.
Chase has great photos of the bank robber who’s still at large.
“No arrests made yet in case”. What a surprise!
As a fellow crime victim I feel sympathy for fellow victims. I am convinced that a group of local hoods is doing this and that they are growing in courage because they have not yet been arrested. We need more foot police and a neighborhood watch. I see groups of punks hanging out on Skillman Avenue and they are frequently stoned.
Do we need to put cameras into all our stores in Sunnyside to give our store owners and customers peace of mind to protect our town against criminals. It is a shame to spend all this money to protect our town. Or lets put togther a crime watch in our town. I guess you cannot be everywhere all the time. So what is the answer?