TD Bank branch in Jefferson Valley, from Google Maps
By Dan Murphy
What is a strong arm burglary? I had never heard of the term until recently.
Most of us have a local bank branch where we have gotten to know the tellers and managers over the years. And while most of our transactions can be done online, it is good to have your local bank if you need to talk to a real person, and wait 10 minutes to do so.
From the Yorktown Police Department:
Yorktown Police report the arrest of three Queens, New York men, ages 19, 19, and 18, charged with Robbery 2nd Degree (a class C Felony), Two Counts of Grand Larceny 4th Degree (a class E Felony), and Possession of Stolen Property 4th Degree (a class E Felony).
On 8/6/26 at around 11:44 AM, Yorktown Police responded to TD Bank at 3660 Lee Rd on a report of a strong-arm robbery. It is alleged that the defendants, while aiding, abetting, and acting in concert, forcibly stole the victim’s purse, which contained more than $1,000.00 in cash and multiple credit cards. Following an investigation, the defendants were located in White Plains by members of the Westchester County Police Department and transported to Yorktown Police Headquarters for arrest processing.
The defendants were brought to Yorktown Justice Court and arraigned before the Honorable Judge Raniolo. Bail was set at $75,000 cash, $150,000 secured bond, and $200,000 partially secured bond. The defendants could not make bail and were remanded to Westchester County Jail, end of report.
Another Westchester media outlet titled their story “Teenagers Steal a Purse.” To me this incident was a bit more than that.
The three teens walked into the branch and were waiting to speak to a manager about a banking item. But they were really inside to see if they can find someone to rob. They saw a middle aged woman go to the teller and take out $1,000. Shortly after, they forcibly took her purse. According to my sources, she put up a good fight, but they left with the cash.
I wonder why nobody got involved in the incident. According to the YPD report, the three were not charged with possessing any weapons. I wonder what any of us would do. Policies in banks have always been let them take the money.
The time is also interesting, 1144AM, right around lunch. Usually at that time of the day, this branch is busy.
Why did they choose this branch and this location?
Neighboring police departments including Carmel the Putnam Sheriff’s Department Police, along with personnel from the Westchester County Police and the Westchester County Police General Investigations Unit, responded to aid Yorktown Police.
The suspects were caught in White Plains, thanks to the Westchester County Police Department’s Real Time Crime center, which according to The Policing Project, one of many groups opposed to the program, “WCPD’s highly advanced, invasive system deploys at least 575 cameras — known as automatic license plate readers — that indiscriminately record vehicles on Westchester County roads, from residential neighborhoods to major highways, and analyzes those recordings using sophisticated AI tools. These cameras are connected to a database containing approximately 1.6 billion vehicle recordings, each of which WCPD retains for at least two years. WCPD provides more than 50 outside agencies with access to that data, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Thank God nobody was hurt.
And what is a Strong Arm Robbery? According to Justia.com, “Strong-arm robbery is a crime where a person steals property using physical force, body strength, or threats of harm. It differs from armed robbery because the offender does not use a deadly weapon or firearm, relying instead on personal weapons like hands, fists, or feet.”