On Friday, police conducted a raid on a migrant shelter located at Randall’s Island. The purpose of the raid was to search for guns and drugs. The raid was conducted in response to a recent triple shooting incident that resulted in the death of a woman.
NYPD Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry emphasized that the topmost priority of the police department is the safety and security of all New Yorkers and individuals under their care. As part of their efforts to ensure this, the NYPD has launched an operation at the Humanitarian Emergency Response and Relief Center located in Randall’s Island. The objective of the operation is to eliminate any hazardous contraband present in the shelter.
According to sources who spoke to 1010 WINS/WCBS 880, the NYPD recently conducted a search of the Randall’s Island migrant center due to concerns about public safety, recent shootings, and violence. The search aimed to uncover any weapons, contraband, or illegal activities, such as potential gang involvement. The migrant center, which houses nearly 3,000 people in five tents, was the focus of the search.
In response to the recent police raid on 3,000 new arrivals, both The Legal Aid Society and the Coalition for the Homeless have expressed their concerns and raised serious constitutional questions. Despite the heat advisory, the police have temporarily displaced these individuals, which is not only draconian but also fuels dangerous xenophobic sentiment. The joint statement further added that these actions would only compound the trauma experienced by the clients and other shelter residents, who have already gone through immense hardship due to their sexual and gender identities, political affiliations, and other reasons both during their journey to New York and in their home countries.
Sources reported that the police cleared the center and made necessary arrangements for the safety of individuals by providing cooling buses, water, and ambulances on standby. Their aim was to search for any illegal substances, contraband, or weapons.
According to the Legal Aid Society, the NYPD leadership has been spreading misinformation about a supposed ‘migrant crime wave’ in New York City for several months. However, the data available does not support this claim, and it seems that this is merely a tactic to placate those who oppose shelters for new arrivals, reduce the number of people staying in these shelters, and create a false image of being ‘tough on crime’.
In the early hours of the morning at Field 71 under the Triborough Bridge, a shooting occurred leaving a 32-year-old man and a 31-year-old woman injured. According to the police, the man suffered a gunshot wound to the throat while the woman was shot in the back. Both of them were taken to NYC Health + Hospitals/Harlem and are currently in stable condition.
The reason behind the shooting and the intended victim remains unknown. As per the report by WABC-TV, the incident took place during a festivity on the field close to the shelter. The New York Police Department is on the lookout for two male suspects, one of whom fled in a car bearing New Mexico plates while the other escaped on a moped. Currently, no details or photographs of the suspects have been disclosed. In an effort to solve the case, the NYPD declared a reward of up to $3,500.
In March, a nightly curfew from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. was imposed at Randall’s Island, which houses the biggest shelter for asylum seekers in the city. The curfew was put in place due to previous problems at the facility.