Police: West Hempstead Man Busted for Larceny, Could Be Responsible for Hundreds More

By Carisa Giardino

An alert resident and some good police work led to the arrest of a West Hempstead man who police believe may be responsible for hundreds of vehicle larcenies in Garden City and beyond.

James Robinson, 45, was arrested Wednesday after a Locust Street resident tipped police off that his car alarm had sounded just after 3 a.m. Patrol officers set up a perimeter and believed Robinson would attempt to flee via Boylston Street.

"We tried to flush him out with different techniques that we use. One officer, who's been working the area and charting some of these larcenies, felt that the subject may try to flee the area via Boylston Street," Garden City police commissioner Kenneth Jackson said. "He got out of his car, secreted himself behind some bushes and actually the flushing worked. The person tried to flee the area via Boylston, where he met the officer."

Robinson, who usually travels on foot or bicycle, was in possession of stolen property from multiple vehicles, police said. He's been wanted for probably hundreds of larcenies, according to Jackson, and has already been arrested five times by Garden City police and 52 times prior throughout Nassau County.

"This is an ongoing battle," Jackson said. "We've asked the court to look very hard at this case."

At the time of his arrest, police found property on Robinson which they were able to tie to one crime already. Jackson asks anyone who had a larceny on Wednesday morning and is missing property to call the police department's detective division at 465-4150.

Trustee Andrew Cavanaugh, who serves as village board liaison to the police department, said an alert citizenry is extraordinarily important to the effectiveness of policing in the village.

"This arrest started with a citizen calling immediately upon recognizing that something was wrong," he said. "We know that there have been more than perhaps our fair share of rifling of automobiles, typically unlocked automobiles, and especially on the eastern side of the village ... We think that perhaps we have at least identified one of the causes of what has become more than just an annoyance but a huge problem."

Jackson said he's already contacted the Nassau County District Attorney's office regarding Robinson. "I'm hoping more charges come forward," he said. "On other cases we've asked for scrutiny. More charges would strengthen our case."