South Philly Review

It was 1968 and 15-year-old Rickey Sciulli went to deliver food on a bike to the now-defunct Tasker Homes, 31st and Morris streets.

Two young men in their early 20s approached Sciulli and snatched the hoagies out of his basket. The teen was lucky - neither man was armed and two sandwiches were all the thieves got.

Still, frightened by the crime, that was the last time Ralph & Rickey's Famous Pizzeria & Restaurant delivered to that location, co-owner Rickey Sciulli said last Friday.

"We are here to serve the public, but if the area is not safe, we're not going. It's not called discrimination, it's safety for our lives," Sciulli said.

At that time, Sciulli and brother Ralph operated the restaurant at Tasker and Taney streets. Now the popular eatery is at Seventh Street and Oregon Avenue.

ROBBING PIZZA DELIVERY PEOPLE is not new by any means, despite the recent attention. Just ask Sciulli, who has been robbed while delivering food at least three times in the last 39 years. In the early '70s, Sciulli was carjacked at Federal and Second streets. Other employees and the store itself also have been targeted over the years.

"This stuff has been going on for years. Now, all of a sudden, everybody's screaming bloody murder," he said.

This particular crime ebbs and flows, according to police statistics.

Since Christmas Day, there have been five robberies with four of those in January, Detective Thorsten Lucke of South Detective Division said. That number is low compared to last year when the 17th District experienced a rash of this type of crime.

"It's kind of calmed down since last year. The numbers have been down," Lucke said.

A January mugging on the 1300 block of Merltewood Street resulted in a driver being shot in the stomach. The other four victims over the roughly five-week period were unharmed.

Four of the five thefts involved a firearm, with the other a strong arm, Lucke said, adding most robberies of this nature involve a gun. Of the five robberies since Dec. 25, all were in the First District except the shooting on Mertlewood in the 17th.

"We have not had that kind of problem on the other side of Broad Street at all. It's always been in the First and 17th districts," Lucke said.

Victims are usually 20 to 40 years old, while perpetrators are age 14 to 25 and work in groups, Lucke said.

"It's very rare that it's one person doing these jobs. It's usually groups of thugs. They pick on [delivery people]. It's an easy target because most of them are foreigners," the detective said.

The thefts are usually committed in one of two ways: It is a crime of opportunity, where the perpetrators spot the driver pulling up and exiting with food, or a call is placed for a set up, Lucke said.

According to police statistics, many of the robbery victims in the last year have worked for Southside Pizza, which has three locations - two in the 17th District at 917 S. 20th St. and at 1508 Point Breeze Ave. A third is at 740 Mifflin St.

When contacted twice, the manager for the Southside Pizzas in the 17th District was not available for comment.