Car dealerships are no strangers to robbery and violent altercations, given the items of value they keep on the premises (not only vehicles, but computers and peripheral equipment as well as personal customer financial data). Last week in Clarkstown, New York, police arrested a 24-year-old man who allegedly fatally shot Youben Joseph, the owner of West Nyack dealership Youbs Auto Sales on Route 59, three times. The shooting, which occurred at the dealership, appears to have stemmed from a dispute. Mr. Joseph was rushed to the hospital and underwent surgery, but succumbed to his injuries during the night, police said.
“There was some kind of altercation between a customer who is our suspect and the business owner who is our victim. It’s something to do with some kind of business transaction,” Det. Pete Walker of the Clarkstown police told CBS2’s Tony Aiello.
On Friday, November 30th, an armed customer shot and killed a masked gunman during an attempted armed robbery at a Hartford, Connecticut-area used-car dealership. The robbery occurred at about 6:50 p.m. at Route 69 Auto Sales and Service, 69 Waterbury Road, in Prospect, Connecticut. Two masked gunmen entered the back of the dealership and approached the customer service area at the front, where they proceeded to assault the owner and several workers, police said. A customer who witnessed the assault drew his legally registered firearm and fired at the suspects, killing one. The body of one 44-year-old assailant was recovered at the scene. Police are still seeking the gunman who fled.
On a lighter note, police in the town of Lakeland, Florida released a clip of a thief at a Hyundai dealership caught on camera struggling to break into the premises, resulting in the loss of his pants. The burglar (unidentified “Florida Man”) reportedly punched a hole in the side of a dealership and attempted to crawl through, at which point his shorts came off. Lakeland police are enlisting the help of the public to identify the “not-so-smooth criminal,” who managed to get away with a generator.
