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Video: Thieves hog-tie Brooklyn man at his home before stealing watches worth $350K

The suspects stole the victim's Rolex Presidential and Audemars Piguet watches worth more than $350,000 from his apartment on February 3

A Brooklyn man was seen in surveillance footage being hog-tied in his apartment by a couple of hooded thieves before they stole expensive designer watches from his apartment.

37-year-old Ilya Basin was made to kneel over by the two unidentified suspects before they stole his Rolex Presidential and Audemars Piguet watches worth more than $350,000 from his apartment on February 3. The crypto consultant and computer expert said that the ordeal lasted about half an hour at his apartment on West 5th Street and Neptune Avenue at Brighton Beach at around noon. It took place after he had opened the door believing the men were dropping off a package belonging to a neighbor in front of his door.

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One of the thieves was captured on video footage tying Basin's hands behind his back while the other scoured his home for valuable items. The alleged victim was seen in the clip shirtless on the ground during the incident as his dog, named Smokey, barked in the background.

"Don't scream or we’re going to have to choke you out," one of the thieves warned Basin.

"I’m not going to scream," Basin said. "I promise."

The suspects continued to demand that Basin tell them where he had hidden his valuables.

"We know you have money, you idiot," one of them said as they continued to search the property.

The duo managed to locate the two luxury watches in Basin's bedroom before beating him up. The thieves subsequently disconnected Basin's internet router and untied him before fleeing the scene. Basin called the incident "traumatizing" and bemoaned that he had invested all his savings into those expensive watches. "I've been living in this city since I was six years old," Basin told the New York Post. "This is my home, but this makes me feel like I should definitely get out of here. I don’t have enemies. I’m a sweetheart of a dude. It’s very shocking that this happened." He added, "That’s all my money. It’s literally all I have. It was my one hope of getting a house, getting out of here. It was my ‘one ticket’ situation to get a better life."

Basin recalled how the pair had broken into his apartment after he saw them dropping off a package on his Nest Cam. "As I opened it, they both bum-rushed me," Basin told The Post. "Maybe if I had some karate training, I would have acted differently, but my first instinct was to try to swing the door close(d). I hit my head on the dog’s food bowl. Once I was on the ground, they zip-tied my hands behind me. They put tape over my mouth and taped my ankles together. For the first minute or two, I was just hoping that I was going to wake up. I didn't think it was real. It happened so quickly that I didn’t know what was going on. It (makes) no sense," he said. The NYPD surveillance footage showing the two men storming into Basin's home and forcing him inside. In another clip, they were seen walking into Basin's kitchen and raiding his fridge. That said, police are yet to identify the suspects and an investigation is underway at the time of publication.

It's worth noting that violent crime has surged in New York City over the past year. Experts have cited several different factors to explain the crisis, including increased tensions between the public and law enforcement, rising unemployment, corrupt politicians, and bail reform laws.