Authorities are looking for those suspected of stealing 400 bulletproof vests that were intended to be donated to Ukrainian medical workers, police said. The vests were stolen from a New York City non-profit organization.
A new video shows the robbery that occurred in March at the offices of the Committee of the Ukrainian Congress of America on Second Avenue in Manhattan. The uniformed woman says that the black garbage bags that the nonprofit organization removed, as seen in the video, contained hundreds of vests donated by local police agencies.
In the span of less than three hours, three different vans pulled up in front of the Ukraine US Congressional Committee building in the East Village, with several people wearing masks casually walking inside. Surveillance video from a deli showed the suspects pulling out large brown boxes filled with bulletproof gear and walking away.
“People right now in our community, either they’re in church praying, or they all feel disenfranchised. They’re powerless right now, and then this happens, and that absolutely affects people,” Andrij Dobriansky said. , a spokesman for the UCCA.
The vests were intended for doctors, aid workers and others who have joined the fight against the Russian military, not Ukrainian soldiers themselves, officials said.
“Those who are not being supplied are the territorial defenses, the people who are sending humanitarian supplies. So these kinds of donations, whether they come from Suffolk County, we have a lot of police stations in New Jersey and upstate New York donating as well, so that’s important,” Dobriansky said.
After Russia invaded Ukraine, support has poured in for non-profits like the UCCA, with donations like clothes, toys, diapers and more all lined up in the front hallway.
Police Departments in the New York City area have donated hundreds of decommissioned bulletproof vests to charities supporting Ukrainian forces fighting the Russian invasion.
The Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office on Long Island said it worked with the UCCA to donate 450 used and retired vests, but could not confirm that the stolen vests were the ones it donated.
The sheriff’s office stops using the vests after five years, but officials said they are still tough enough to offer protection in war.
“It is despicable for someone to break into a building to steal supplies and materials intended to help those affected by this humanitarian crisis,” said Vicki DiStefano, spokeswoman for Suffolk County Sheriff Errol Toulon Jr.
“As far as we can tell, maybe about three-quarters of that supply was taken last night,” Dobriansky said, adding that neighbors and elected officials from near and far had been checking in throughout the day.
“The fact that New York is not only being generous, but responding very well tonight, warms our hearts,” he said.
Police are looking for all three vans and whoever was in them, and whoever was responsible for the theft. They were able to trace the vests to Brooklyn, but have yet to recover the loot. A reward has been offered for information leading to an arrest.
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