Even while Flatbush experienced an economic boom, it was also subject to frequent criminal activity and violence. On April 6, 1922, a prominent Flatbush druggist, Sachor C. Tetz, was held up at gunpoint by three bandits and robbed of $3,775 worth of money and jewelry. This holdup left many other Flatbush storekeepers worried about their own businesses, as it should have.[i] The Ebinger’s at Flatbush Avenue and Avenue K was robbed in 1953 a total of “seven times in six weeks…[with the robber sticking] up the same store three times…for no particular reason.”[ii] Also, in 1964 the police were trying to track down a rapist who attacked seven women from a few neighborhoods, including Flatbush.[iii] Policewomen detectives were disguising themselves as housewives and office workers and roaming around shady areas in order to lure the rapist.
[i] “Armed Bandits Get $3,775 in Drug Store Holdup in Flatbush,” Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 1922. http://bklyn.newspapers.com/.
[ii] “Bandit Admits 7 Raids on Ebinger Shops,” Brooklyn Daily Eagle, August 2, 1953. http://bklyn.newspapers.com/.
[iii] “Policewomen Hunt Rapist In Brooklyn,” New York Times, November 12, 1964. http://www.nytimes.com/
