WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — A man was handcuffed in his own Washington Heights apartment Tuesday morning by two armed-men impersonating police officers, but was able to stave off robbery after he began to yell for help, an NYPD spokesperson told Patch.

The 39-year-old man walked out of his apartment door around 4 a.m. near West 180th Street and Amsterdam Avenue, when he was immediately approached in the building’s hallway by two men, police said.

One of the men asked in Spanish, “Are you Jose?” police said.

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The resident said no, but the two men proceeded to both flash guns and state they were police officers, before handcuffing the man and grabbing his keys, police said.

The duo then led the handcuffed man back into his apartment and brought him to the kitchen, police said.

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The 39-year-old man began yelling out for neighbors to call 911, and the two men panicked and fled the apartment, police said. The duo didn’t end up taking anything or injuring the man, but did leave him in the handcuffs, police said.

There is no description of the two men at this time.

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