Muggers often don’t care how old their victims are or if they’re robbing a man or a woman.
They’re also not concerned about being seen on surveillance cameras.
Those revelations are some of the results of a survey of convicted robbers conducted by NBCNewYork.com.
The television station said it mailed surveys to hundreds of convicted felons in the New York City area asking them about who, where and how they decide to target.
It seems the No. 1 thing crooks are looking for is are easy, well-dressed targets who happen to be alone at the time.
NBC didn’t say exactly how many responses they received, but reported 45 percent of robbers are attracted by nice clothing and jewelry. In addition, 31 percent were looking for a victim who they thought wouldn’t fight back. Nearly one-fourth are most likely to targeted a person who looked lost or drunk.
About 70 percent admitted they carried a weapon when robbing someone — the felons reported using a variety of guns and knives. Even more (74 percent) said they’d commit a robbery even if they knew surveillance cameras are in the area.
Nearly two-third said they followed their victim for awhile before attacking.
The robbers are often serial offenders with 39 percent of respondents saying they have stolen from at least 20 people. Roughly half said the age and gender of their target were of no consequence. About half also said they’ve robbed people in both the city and the suburbs.
Most strike on the street. The second most-popular place to rob someone is inside or outside a building. Suburban robbers favor pouncing while the victim is in her or her driveway.
Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
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