New York City police investigate multiple manhole incidents

New York City police are investigating a series of incidents involving individuals entering and exiting manholes across the city. On Sunday morning, three men were seen entering a manhole on West 141st Street in the Hamilton Heights neighborhood of Manhattan. By the time officers arrived, the individuals had disappeared.

This follows several other recent sightings. On October 9, a group of four men and one woman emerged from a manhole on the Upper East Side, leaving behind shovels and tools before fleeing in a black SUV. In late September, three men were spotted climbing out of a sewer in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn.

Authorities believe these individuals are urban scavengers searching for valuables that have been dropped or washed into the sewer system by rain. While one previous incident near a hotel used by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prompted sweeps by the NYPD and federal agents, no suspicious activity was found in that instance, and police currently believe the scavengers pose no direct threat.