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NEW YORK, Dec. 24 (AP) — Multiple people have been poisoned with narcotics in what investigators say is a criminal gang’s plan to incapacitate and rob New York City bars and nightclubs.
Police and prosecutors said Thursday that the killings — at least five according to police — dated back several months and appeared to be the work of separate crews who acted independently of each other but used tactics resemblance.
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Men secretly inject revelers with dangerous doses of drugs to knock them out, then take their wallets and mobile phones, sometimes using their digital banking details to empty their accounts.
In March, 29-year-old chef Nurbu Sherpa was found dead on the sidewalk after leaving the bar where he was celebrating St. Patrick’s Day.
In April, Julio Ramirez, a 25-year-old social worker, died in a taxi after leaving a Manhattan bar with a group of men. Later, relatives discovered that some of his savings had been stolen.
In May, John Umberger, a 33-year-old political consultant visiting from Washington, D.C., was found dead of an apparent drug overdose in his townhouse. Surveillance footage shows him leaving a popular club and being held up by a group of men. Money was also withdrawn from his bank account.
Others have come forward with stories of being drugged by strangers and waking up to find their money gone.
Many crimes remain unsolved, but the Manhattan District Attorney announced Thursday that a Bronx suspect, Kenwood Allen, has been charged with the murder of the Sherpa and the killing of 26-year-old Aldyan Bey Ardijan Berisha.
In July, Berisha of South Salem, New York, passed out on the sidewalk with a friend after drinking at a bar on Manhattan’s Lower East Side.
Prosecutors said Allen drugged the two victims with fentanyl and robbed them. He was charged in three other cases in which the victim survived.
Allen’s sister told the Daily News her brother was innocent.
“My brother is not a murderer,” said Lauren Allen, 39, who was a murderer. “My brother has been taking care of his family, his mother, his sisters. He doesn’t belong to any gang. He’s not on some crew that’s going around drugging and robbing. That’s not true, that’s ridiculous.”
No one has been charged in connection with the other killings, which are still under investigation.
“No one should worry that an evening with friends at a Manhattan bar will end in tragedy,” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said.
At a news conference Thursday, the NYPD Lt. Dave Leonardi said some of the victims were given a cocktail of drugs that included lidocaine, fentanyl and cocaine, the actual incapacitating substance.
The deaths of Ramirez and Umberger have raised concerns that gay men are being targeted. Both died after leaving an LGBTQ bar in Manhattan. Some victims and their relatives have complained that police have not dealt with the crimes with more urgency.
Umberger’s mother, Linda Clary of Dawsonville, Ga., said she was dismayed by authorities’ response after hearing Ramirez’s death and the stories of others.
“There are enough reported cases that the NYPD should be sounding the alarm that this is happening and that people need to be careful, but they’re not,” she said.
NYPD Detective Chief James Essig said the robbery occurred outside the gay community.
“We don’t think they’re specifically targeting gay members,” he said. “It’s all based on monetary gain.”
Beverly Tillary, executive director of New York City’s Anti-Violence Project, which advocates for the LGBTQ community, said people remain uneasy about possible targets, especially in an environment where anti-LGBTQ sentiment is pervasive across the country .
“There’s a sense of tension,” she said, “and not knowing what’s coming next to attack our community.” (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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