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NY Post
New York Post
15 Aug 2023


NextImg:Serial burglar accused of breaking into Robert De Niro’s NYC townhouse went on new crime spree after release on bail

The serial burglar accused of breaking into Robert De Niro’s Manhattan townhouse posted bail and was freed from jail — only to allegedly pull off another brazen crime spree, The Post has learned.

Shanice Aviles, 30, was recently charged in two more burglaries, including one where she allegedly snuck into Columbia University and slugged a security guard — and later claimed she was only looking for a bathroom, court documents show.

Aviles — who was allegedly caught red-handed trying to steal the Oscar-winning actor’s Christmas presents in December — made bail in the case on May 3 after spending nearly five months at Rikers Island, according to Department of Correction records.

Manhattan prosecutors had cautioned at a hearing back on Dec. 20 that Aviles would likely break the law again if she was released back to the streets — with the judge then setting her bail at $40,000 cash or $120,000 bond.

Less than a month after her release from jail, that prediction came true — with Aviles allegedly stealing $416 worth of merchandise from a T.J. Maxx on Sixth Avenue near West 19th Street on June 5, cops said.

She was hauled into Manhattan Criminal Court in that petit larceny case on June 7, with the judge setting bail at $10,000 cash or a $5,000 bond — which Aviles later posted, according to law enforcement sources.

Shanice Aviles allegedly committed two more burglaries after getting released on bail for allegedly breaking into Robert De Niro’s Manhattan townhouse.
Steven Hirsch

Aviles was caught alelgdly attempting to break into De Niro's home in December 2022.

Aviles was caught alelgdly attempting to break into De Niro’s home in December 2022.
Photo by Jason Mendez/Getty Images for Tribeca Festival

Then on July 8, she was busted again after allegedly sneaking into Columbia’s Teachers College in Morningside Heights through a window, police said.

A security guard patrolling the building at around 6:30 p.m. spotted tools sitting near an open window that should have been locked shut — and then found Aviles inside the building, filling up her bag with various items, according to a criminal complaint.

When that guard and others tried to stop her, she allegedly flipped out, punching him in the face, flipping over furniture in the room and stepping on his $600 glasses, breaking them, the complaint against her states.

Aviles claimed she’d gone into the building because she needed to use the restroom, according to the court document.

Aviles was caught allegedly stealing $416 worth of merchandise from a T.J. Maxx in Manhattan on June 5, 2023.

Aviles was caught allegedly stealing $416 worth of merchandise from a T.J. Maxx in Manhattan on June 5, 2023.
Steven Hirsch

Aviles was caught allegedly stealing from Columbia's Teachers College before attacking a security guard on July 8, 2023.

Aviles was caught allegedly stealing from Columbia’s Teachers College before attacking a security guard on July 8, 2023.
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Cops said they found a laptop and electronic tablet in her bag.

She was charged with burglary and criminal mischief, and a judge sent her to Rikers without bail at her arraignment the following day, the DA’s office said.

The details in that case are similar to those of the Dec. 18, 2022 break-in at De Niro’s Upper East Side pad, where prosecutors alleged Aviles used a knife and “crowbar-like tool” to force her way into the basement as the actor slept upstairs.

Aviles already had at least 26 arrests on her rap sheet — including 16 over the prior year — when she was arrested inside the star’s $69,000-a-month rented townhouse.

Police outside of De Niro's home after the break-in in December.

Police outside of De Niro’s home after the break-in in December.
Matthew McDermott

Officers from the NYPD’s 19th Precinct Public Safety team had been tailing Aviles after recognizing her as a “known burglar” as she allegedly tried several doors before reaching De Niro’s home at around 2 a.m.

Cops allegedly found her inside, fumbling with the actor’s iPad.

She was charged with burglary and possession of burglar tools.

Aviles allegedly was found inside the townhouse with the actor's iPad.

Aviles allegedly was found inside the townhouse with the actor’s iPad.
Matthew McDermott

It wasn’t clear if Aviles or someone else had paid her bail in both cases.

New York Defender Services, the public defense legal firm that represents her, did not respond to requests for comment.

Following her December arrest, Aviles told The Post she was a De Niro fan and wanted to apologize to the actor.

“I love his movies, all of them!” she said. “My mother, my grandmother, my grandfather, we all used to watch them.”

Her next court date is Oct. 11.

Additional reporting by Craig McCarthy