A veteran police who is fighting for his life after he was violently mugged Tuesday on his morning jog in the Bronx was carried out by a suspected three-man crew that allegedly robbed five other people that night and a total of 19 this month.
Tuesday’s spree began shortly after midnight when they allegedly carjacked a livery driver’s Honda at gunpoint, police sources said.
Officer Muhammad Chowdhury skull was cracked during the robbery and he has recently been taken off a respirator and can talk.
Police sources tell DailyMail.com that the same Honda was used for the attack on the officer, an 18-year veteran assigned to the Central Park precinct who was running through the Soundview district at 10:50 a.m.
Chowdhury was repeatedly struck in the head before the men stole his cellphone, car keys and wallet, was discovered lying on the sidewalk bleeding from his ear on Olmstead Avenue, between Lafayette and Turnbull Avenues.
The officer was taken to Jacobi hospital and diagnosed with a fractured skull and bleeding from the brain.
A group of thugs (pictured) beat an off-duty Officer Muhammad Chowdhury
A bystander told police that the man – who had no ID on him and was not immediately recognized as a member of the NYPD – had been attacked by three black men, who then sped away in a black Honda Accord.
Sources said it’s believed to be the same 2016 Honda that was stolen at 12:40 a.m. Tuesday, outside De Kruif Place in Co-Op City in the Bronx. The 52-year-old livery driver was answering a service call when two men entered his car, one flashing a gun and ordering him to exit. Another vehicle pulled up and blocked him in, then a third armed man appeared. The assailants stole his cell phones, credit cards, $500 cash and a watch before driving off.
Six hours later, the trio allegedly attacked their next victim. At 6:45 a.m., at the corner of Barnes Avenue and Pelham Parkway South in the Bronx, a 39-year-old man was approached by three individuals in a black Honda sedan. One held the victim from behind, while another punched him in the face. A third man stole his wallet, containing ID, a debit car and $150.
Less than an hour later, a 55-year-old man was mugged elsewhere in the Bronx by three men on Watson Avenue, one displaying a knife while another pummeled the victim. They stole his wallet and $25, then fled in the black Honda.
Minutes later, there were two apparently linked robberies outside the same building on Quimby Avenue. A 36-year-old man was slashed in the elbow as a trio stole his wallet and $40. Meanwhile, a 32-year-old woman had her purse stolen at knifepoint. The perpetrators fled in the black Honda.
One of the perpetrators was seen wearing a black hoodie
It was three hours later that they allegedly attacked the officer in the Soundview district. They fled westbound on Turnbull Avenue.
The officer was unable to stand or speak when he was found.
Mayor Eric Adams visited the hospital on Tuesday night.
The spree began Aug. 1 when a group of men in a Toyota Rav4 pulled alongside a 35-year-old man on Lurting Avenue in the Bronx, flashed a knife, punched the victim in the eye then drove off in his Hyundai Sonata.
Nearly all of the robberies took place in the Bronx, with the perpetrators in several instances attempting to force drivers out of their luxury cars, including a BMW and Mercedes, and stealing their belongings.