Where Theives Lurk

Manny Fernandez: Every night, before he shuts off the lights of his bodega in South Ozone Park, Queens, Reynaldo Rojas takes out some plastic bags and fills them with dozens of cigarette packs and phone cards from behind the counter. He empties the cigar box he uses as a cash register and tucks a wad of bills into his pants.

He has learned to leave little of value behind. In South Ozone Park these days, bodega owners assume the worst.