Cell-phone looters on W. 8th St. hit cop with car

A police officer tried to stop a group of young looters fleeing a Village phone shop but they struck him with one of their cars and got away.

On Mon., June 1, around 3:23 a.m., police responded to a burglary in progress at the I Fix Screens cell-phone store at 14 W. Eighth St., between Fifth Ave. and MacDougal St.

The officers determined that a group of males from two vehicles had broken the storefront window and were robbing the place. They pulled their van up in front of one of the crooks’ cars to block them from from fleeing.

One cop jumped out to try to stop the burglars but was struck by the car, a late-model Ford Explorer with temporary Wisconsin plates. The Explorer, along with a late-model Honda Accord with New Jersey plates, fled the scene heading eastbound on Eighth St.

The police officer was removed to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition.

Police released photos and video taken from the location during the time of the incident.

Anyone with information should call the New York Police Department’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). Tips can also be submitted on the Crime Stoppers Web site at WWW.NYPDCRIMESTOPPERS.COM or on Twitter at @ NYPDTips.

All tips are strictly confidential.