Masked Robber Holds Woman Down, Steals Purse In Tanger Parking Lot: PD

RIVERHEAD, NY — A masked robber held down a woman in a car at the Tanger Outlet Saturday afternoon, grabbing her purse through an open window, police said.

According to Riverhead Town police, the incident took place at about 2:40 p.m.; the Riverhead Police Department received numerous calls reporting that a woman had been robbed in the Tanger 2 parking lot on West Main Street in Riverhead, police said.

Callers told police that an unknown man was hiding behind a bush in a parking lot, near a wooded area, just east of Tanger 2, police said. Upon arrival, police were able to detain the man, who was still hiding behind the bush behind two Tanger parking lots, police said.

The woman, 44, who was visiting friends from out of state, was asleep in the backseat of a friend's vehicle, which was parked in the parking lot of Tanger 2 while her friends were shopping, police said.

The woman reported that she woke up and saw the arm of an unknown man reach through the open passenger side rear window; he held her down as she was lying on the backseat of the vehicle, police said.

While forcibly holding her down, the man reached in the vehicle with his other arm and attempted to remove her purse, which also contained her debit card, police said.

A struggle for the purse ensued, and the man was able to steal the purse from the victim and flee on foot, eastbound through the Tanger 2 parking lot toward the wooded area, police said.

The woman, who reported minor injuries as a result of the incident, exited the vehicle and chased after the man, screaming and alerting others in the area that she had just been robbed, police said.

Two good Samaritans helped by also chasing after the man; other good Samaritans also saw the man fleeing and called police, officials said.

Shawn Collins, 35, who is without a known address but frequents the Riverhead area, was detained and found to be in possession of a black ski mask that he was observed to have been wearing by witnesses at the scene, police said. The reported purse and debit card that were taken from the woman were positively identified and he was determined to be the robber, police said.

The Suffolk County Department of Probation responded to the scene and reported that they were alerted when Collins removed his court-ordered GPS ankle bracelet from a prior case and discarded it into the wooded area, police said.

A Riverhead Police Department K9 unit responded to the scene and was able to locate and recover evidence related to the reported robbery and was also able to locate and recover the GPS ankle bracelet that was removed and discarded by Collins, police said.

Collins was arrested and transported to the Riverhead Police Department, where he was charged with third-degree robbery, a felony, and held for arraignment, police said.

The investigation remains ongoing. Anyone who may have witnessed the incident or has information is asked to contact the Riverhead Police Department's detective division at 631-727-4500. All calls will be kept confidential.