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Robber duo prefers iPhone over Android, BlackBerry

Beggars can't be choosy, goes the saying, but apparently robbers can. Two muggers prowling the neighborhoods around Columbia University in New York City are looking for iPhones. If their victims present Android or BlackBerry smartphones, they don't take them, says a report from our affiliate NBC New York.As a former Columbia student and someone who has been mugged (though not in New York), I take
Alleged iPhone mugger, shown in screenshot from surveillance video.
Alleged iPhone mugger, shown in screenshot from surveillance video.NBC New York / Today

Beggars can't be choosy, goes the saying, but apparently robbers can. Two muggers prowling the neighborhoods around Columbia University in New York City are looking for iPhones. If their victims present Android or BlackBerry smartphones, they don't take them, says a report from our affiliate NBC New York.

As a former Columbia student and someone who has been mugged (though not in New York), I take the violence in this story quite seriously. But even I couldn't help but chuckle at the blatant cellphone discrimination. And neither can the students themselves.

As NBC New York's Katy Tur reports:

The frightening encounters may be the talk of the campus, but students said they were caught somewhere between amusement and alarm.

"It's insulting they don't want my BlackBerry," said a female student.

"I don't like mine," said another student. "I'm waiting to get an iPhone myself."

Here's hoping they catch those guys — Apple fanboys can be bad enough even when non-violent.

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