Bronx Crime Watch: NW Bronx Churches Targeted in String of Break-ins

By David Greene

Detectives continue to hunt for the individual or people responsible in a string of break-ins and burglaries of churches and Catholic schools in Bedford Park, Norwood and Kingsbridge Heights. The thief or thieves responsible have netted thousands of dollars in cash and electronics.

On Monday morning, Our Lady of Refuge, on 196th Street and Briggs Avenue, became the fifth church or Catholic school targeted in the last three weeks when church officials found that someone had broken in through a basement window and stolen a pair of laptop computers, a video camera and $1,300 in cash.

Other houses of worship targeted recently include St. Ann’s Church on Bainbridge Avenue, Kingsbridge Evangelical Lutheran Church on Bailey Avenue, St. John’s Church on Kingsbridge Avenue and Our Lady of Angels on Claflin Avenue.

Principal Marivel Colon of Our Lady of Refuge School said several windows and doors will have to be replaced. “They threw things all over the place,” Colon said. The pair of stolen laptops had recently been purchased with a grant to their early childhood program.

“It’s devastating,” Colon continued. “I’ve been here 20 years and we’ve never had a break-in. Look at the neighborhood, there’s not a lot of money here.”

Police were expected to meet with church officials on Tuesday, Nov. 30, in an effort to prevent future robberies.

The latest crime spree began on Nov. 6, a month after a similar crime spree came to an end when police arrested Dimas Cuadrado, 28, of Throgs Neck. Cuadrado has pleaded not guilty to charges that connect him to several break-ins of Bronx churches.

Correction: In the original print edition article and blog post, we mistakenly put the wrong street location for Our Lady of Refuge Church. It is located on 196th Street.

Ed. note: This article appears in the latest edition of the Norwood News, which is out on streets and online now. Pick up a copy today.

Bronx News Roundup, Nov. 30

The Daily News' Patrice O'Shaughnessy says troubling questions still remain in the death of Billy Murphy, a homeless man who died in Norwood back in August. Police insist his death was an accident, but those who knew him aren't convinced. For more on Murphy's life and death, check out this Norwood News story and BxNN post.

A burglary at Our Lady of Refuge School in Bedford Park on Sunday may be connected to a string of recent break-ins at Bronx churches.

A construction firm working on the delayed and over-budget Croton Water Filtration Plant in Van Cortlandt Park lied about hiring minority subcontractors.  To atone for the fraud, Schiavone Construction has agreed to pay a $20 million fine. According to the Daily News, the firm was ratted out by a Gambino mobster.

In his weekly column, the Daily News' Bob Kappstatter gives some ink to a campaign aimed at encouraging readers and advertisers to boycott the Riverdale Review, a weekly paper published by Andy Wolf. Tony Cassino, a lawyer and politico who has often come under attack in the Review, insists he's only a bit-player in the effort, and that parents angry at Wolf's coverage of Riverdale schools are the ones driving it. For some background on the campaign, here's a Riverdale Press article. It seems a pretty balanced take on the situation considering the two papers rarely see eye to eye. For more, here's Cassino writing about the campaign on his blog, and here's Wolf hitting back at his "anti-first amendment" critics. 

A Bronx man has been charged with stealing $5 million from Columbia University.

State Senator Pedro Espada, Jr. was a no-show at yesterday's special session in Albany.  Espada, who leaves office at end of the year, was the only absent Democrat.  According to The Times, he cited a family emergency. Yesterday, Espada's staffers were mum on his whereabouts.  Gustavo Rivera, the man who will take ownership of his seat in January, was in Albany yesterday, where he voted on the Senate Democratic leadership. 

A 15-year-old Bronx boy drowned on Sunday after drifting into the deep end of a hotel swimming pool in Pennsylvania.

The women's basketball coach at Hostos Community College is hoping that four-year colleges begin to take notice of the team's talented players.

Cathleen Black, the city's new schools chancellor, visited PS 109 in Morris Heights this morning. Black was officially hired yesterday.

A pizza delivery man was struck and killed by a car in Riverdale last night as he crossed the street. The driver remained on the scene and wasn't charged.

The family of a Bronx teen shot in the face by a police officer last year is suing the NYPD. The cop lied about what really happened, and had no reason to shoot, the family contends.

Some Bronx organizations which received tax breaks and bonds from the city's Industrial Development Agency in order to boost the local economy, have actually shed jobs, not created them. 

The Rockefeller Center's annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony will be held tonight.  This year, the tree came from the garden of a Bronx fireman who lives upstate.