Four shots fired on Franklin Street

Shots were fired this afternoon at 5:10p on Franklin Street in front of Patron of the New, the semi-secret designer boutique where a hold-up took place on August 28. (No shots were fired then, but witnesses and police said the suspects were armed.)

The NYPD said four shell casings were found in front of 155 Franklin and a witness said he/she saw three men, wearing blue jeans and T-shirts, run off on foot heading east on Franklin. No one was robbed, nothing was damanged and no one was injured. When I asked the NYPD public information officer what he thought the suspects could be firing at, he had no guesses.

“This isn’t common in the 1st Precinct,” he said. “But it’s somewhat common in the other boroughs. Welcome to New York City in 2020.”

When I called Patron of the New after the last incident, they said they had nothing to do with the robbery and then hung up on me several times. But the suspects then did make off with $9k in cash and $5k in merchandise.

Taylor Swift owns the townhouse at 153 Franklin as well as three floors of 155. Aziz Ansari owns one floor of 155 as well, assuming he is still there since his 2018 purchase.

Police said they received a 911 call that shots were fired, and spoke to a witness when they arrived, long after the suspects had left. They discovered the shell casings and said they will be canvassing for video as well.

 

 

31 Comments

  1. I think it’s time for Patron to go.

  2. Maybe the store needs to hire security for the safety of their employees and clients. not to say the neighborhood.

  3. 165 Duane Street
    4A

    Maybe credit cards only would help this situation.

  4. So upsetting and scary. I watched it unfold on Citizen app. This store seems to be consistent neighborhood hazard to say the least…

    • Please don’t blame the store, it’s done nothing to warrant this.

      The recent uptick in crime in TriBeCa seems to be closely correlated with the large groups of “protesters” who now regularly gather downtown. City Hall Park has been vandalized repeatedly. We had to deal with a month-long occupation that started as a budget boycott. There are statements like “F the police” and “Die Pigs” graffitied on Chambers Street and the Woolworth Building regularly. High-end stores along Broadway in SoHo have been tagged and had windows smashed many times. And now we’ve had two shootings in what has been one of the safest areas in the city in the last month. This is disgusting behavior that isn’t helping anyone and only makes this city a worse place to live for all of us.

      • The store has everything to do with it, They know their clientele, they know if they get paid mostly with cash or credit, more importantly armed robbers know and the line outside creates a feeding frenzy for criminals. Armed robbery happened there a month ago and store did not hire security, They are to blame for that part and police are to blame for not focusing on a target area. Mayor of course is aways to blame in my book because his inactions have caused this city to become less safe. Enough blame to go around. If this community wants its safety back, time to speak up.

    • Goodness Jules, it must have been terrifying to watch everything unfold on the Citizen app.

      Sounds like a well funded lawsuit should compensate your pain and suffering.

      As far as someone on the inside “tipping off robbers” I’d doubt that and suggest that the issue has to do with the fact that a store selling high end streetwear worth tens of thousands of dollars isn’t getting paid with many personal checks or credit cards from the clientele it’s attracting. The store as well as the customers on line outside probably have more cash on hand on any given day than the window teller at your favorite Citibank branch.

      • Your comment was obnoxious and condescending. You know nothing about me. I was conversing with people on the app who fled the bullets on the street and were talking to police. Kindness and community support go a long way these days. Be well.

  5. Maybe they need to get security guard to keep employees and client safe. Not to mention the families who live on the block. All the upscale shops in Soho have guards. Also, maybe Tribeca needs to do what the upper west is doing. Coming together to save our neighborhood.

  6. When crime is down NYPD takes the credit. When crime is up?”Welcome to New York in 2020?” PSSSSHHHHHH! No kidding it isn’t common in the First Precinct. What an astute observation.

    First off this place Patron of the New has to go as it is obviously a magnet for robberies and there must be someone connected to if not working there who is tipping off robbers because two robbery attempts a month apart? That can’t be coincidence or happenstance. The landlord should kick them out ASAP.

    Second, to First Precinct:

    You should be embarrassed that two robberies have taken place two blocks away from you. Instead of your we told you so crap, instead of hiding and loafing in patrol cars on Staple and Collister Streets (the real hotspots of crime in TriBeCa LOL) how ’bout you WALK THE BEAT? You know, do actual policework instead of be on your phones and hang out next to Nancy Whiskey Pub at your newest and second barricaded spot West Broadway and Avenue of The Americas – and why have you closed W. B’way between AOTA and Canal Street along with Ericsson Place?

    How ’bout you have a patrol car on Franklin right across from thus robbery magnet instead of Jay and Staple or Collister and Laight?

    How ’bout you take the blame as well as the credit?

    How ’bout you stop being overpaid glorified crime scene attendants?

  7. this store attracts a certain criminal element. its time for it to go. can we boycott it or bring it up at cb1?

  8. I guess next step is getting the neighborhoods associations together and sue NYPD for a clear and evident lack in response to these disgraceful episodes. We pay the top taxes in the country, the least we can ask for is safety.

    The list of issues is long as the Bible but this is a real priority and we can’t keep accepting this.

    Truth is NYPD claims to have hands tied…but we can’t keep going like this, the city administration and that moron of the mayor need a serious action against them. NYPD though is becoming a joke, with policemen hiding inside cars all doing chewing gums eating donuts doing nothing at all.

    Disgrace!

    • I would be interested in organizing with others to address the issue. Can we start by calling First Precinct on this specific matter? TC – can you help organize a petition? Patron of the new is a magnet for crime and we should address before someone gets hurt.

      Two times that we see guns on Franklin? We should not let this be the norm.

      • I live on this block. The amount of exotic cars with out of state licenses and tinted windows is getting greater by the day. The amount of weed and drugs being smoked, groups of people playing dice with large wads of cash in hand. I sat on my stoop with my 11 month old son 10 minutes prior to this shooting taking place within arms length of where we were sitting. I spoke with detectives and they said “someone from the neighborhood will need to be shot before something takes place as they have their hands tied”. I saw images of the MACH10 set-automatic rifle used when the line of customers was robbed a month ago. This is crazy and the store owners and manager want nothing to do with us and refuse to even engage in conversation. We need to petition the shutdown of that store its going to destroy this block and I refuse to allow it to get to place where someone gets hurt.

        • I spoke with the 1st precinct – EVERYONE must call the 1st precinct and speak with Community affairs, we can get this store shutdown they just need to know we all are behind this and will do anything to see it happen. I just spoke with a detective in length and he said it can be done.

        • I’m so sorry you have been experiencing this so close at hand, AN. I am with you in doing all I can to help.

    • Really Peaceful Warrior???? Get your warrior suit on and go deal with armed criminals. Instead of blaming our overworked, underpaid, and now targeted police force, how about you write the dipshit mayor and murderous governor and ask them to stop defunding and castrating our police force!!!!
      Or better yet, why don’t you and your liberal buddies do a neighborhood watch and take care of your community.
      Can’t stand keyboard warriors who are so brave holed up in their multimillion $ Tribeca apartments. Did you think this garbage wouldn’t come to your hood? Surprise surprise.

  9. Why blame the police? they were asked to stand down by both the mayor and the governor. I don’t blame them for doing nothing, because if they did they would be called racist.

    • It’s pretty simple. Stop with the police brutality. Weed out the bad cops and stop protecting them. Stop excusing a strike against the public safety by cops who want to protect bad apples and who are against reform.

      Police are public employees with assigned tasks. If they don’t want to do their job, they should quit and pay back their salaries.

    • So just to be clear, you’re saying… unless police are allowed to murder innocent people with zero consequences, they should stop doing their jobs, so that MORE innocent people suffer?

      Wait, there HAVE been SOME consequences… the lawsuits brought against them, that WE pay with OUR taxes. Look it up: New York City taxpayers spent $230 million to pay off 6,472 lawsuits settled against the NYPD in the fiscal year 2017-2018 according to an annual report released by Comptroller Scott Stringer’s office. The lawsuits included excessive use of force, wrongful arrest and imprisonment, malicious prosecution and more.

      $230 million to protect bad cops in ONE year? Why are the good cops standing by this BS?! If these dangerous, violent thugs were in the army, they’d be court-martialed and kicked out. But the NYPD protects them, using OUR TAXES. what kind of madness is this? This doesn’t happen in other countries.

      Stop protecting bad cops. Protect New Yorkers!!

  10. Anybody know who the landlord is? And I cannot imagine the people who live above the store are happy. Where is Community Board 1? This is certainly a quality of life issue.

  11. NYPD a block away. Where were the police?

  12. The store has everything to do with it, They know their clientele, they know if they get paid mostly with cash or credit, more importantly armed robbers know and the line outside creates a feeding frenzy for criminals. Armed robbery happened there a month ago and store did not hire security, They are to blame for that part and police are to blame for not focusing on a target area. Mayor of course is aways to blame in my book because his inactions have caused this city to become less safe. Enough blame to go around. If this community wants its safety back, time to speak up.

  13. BLM but not in our neighborhood.

  14. So, let’s say NYPD “did their job”. They end up arresting a couple of people for illegal firearm possession, etc. The new “bail reform” law passed by our state legislature and signed by our governor prevent judges from requiring bail for these crimes. They are out in the street 24 hours later, and the cops that arrested them will be called racists. Even worse, if the criminals were to take out their guns, the cops would hesitate before taking out their guns, lest they lose their jobs and pensions for shooting a criminal. If you were a cop, would you want to “do your job”?

  15. This is ridiculous race baiting and you know it. Nobody is complaining that the clientele is black. They are complaining that there have been two armed robberies/shootings on this block (where I live, BTW), in the past month. The problem is that this store has made our street a target as people with tons of cash are standing around ripe for the picking. Couple that with the fact that the store seems to shrug off any responsibility. I agree that black lives matter…so they shouldn’t be shot at while trying to buy clothing.

  16. As mentioned by others, it would be great for the neighborhood to get together and address this. Would appreciate an exchange with constructive thoughts on how we can best action.

  17. Patron caters to drug dealers and rappers. Let’s keep it 100 here and call it what it is. Typical snowflakes on here being the PC police when there was 0 violence before the store existed. SMH

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