New York City police arrested a group of illegal immigrant thieves early Monday as authorities crack down on a Venezuelan gang linked to dozens of robberies and a shocking assault on NYPD officers that went viral last week.
Then city leaders made a show of it, with a local news crew present, and sharing photos online hours before they announced a news briefing on the matter.
Democrats around the country have been criticized over a failed border policy under President Biden that saw a record number of illegals enter the U.S. in December. But the blue city's leaders are feeling the heat after a group of illegal immigrant suspects seen on video kicking police in the head were freed from custody under no-bail policies.
NYC Mayor Eric Adams, a former NYPD captain, and department brass joined officers after the raid on a migrant-run robbery ring, NYPD Assistant Commissioner Kaz Daughtry wrote on X.
"Those who think they're gonna come to our country, break our laws, assault our cops – that was not only an assault on an individual – that was an assault on our system of public safety," Adams said on video in a follow-up post. "They're gonna use an organized method to commit crimes? This can't happen."
The NYPD did not immediately respond to a request for more information on the raid. But NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell told FOX 5 New York that the search warrant followed an arrest Sunday evening related to a Venezuelan thieving crew with ties to some of the suspects involved in a mob assault on two NYPD officers last week.
"Over the weekend we made a significant arrest with a couple migrants doing a couple phone snatches," he said. "It was part of a big citywide pattern, 62 events of people… women getting their pocketbooks and phones snatched."
Separately, NYPD Inspector Nicholas Fiore said police were still on the hunt for the gang's suspected leader.
"He's the big target," he said. "He's caused a lot of problems in New York City. Hopefully, we'll grab him when we get some headway on this."
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Adams, Chell and Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny donned bulletproof vests and joined tactical officers early Monday morning, according to Daughtry, who shared pictures on X.
PIX 11, a local news station, reported Monday that one of its reporters was on the scene in the Bronx when police served the search warrant.
As city leaders look to recover from the outrage caused by the overwhelming arrival of migrants and soft-on-crime policies, Adams drew criticism online for the photo-op and for what appears to be a $700 Fendi scarf under his flak vest.
"Big impact on crime, this migrant Venezuelan crew that's preying on our city," Chell said. "We cannot have this anymore. We've gotta stop it."
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He also reported a 92% increase in moped-related crimes, which typically involve riders ambushing people on the street, stealing their belongings and scooting off.
"It coincides with when the migrants came in," Chell said. "It comes out of Times Square. It's affecting four out of five boroughs in our city."
As part of a broader crackdown on those crimes, District Attorney Melinda Katz in Queens announced the seizure of dozens of illegally parked scooters Monday morning.
Her Manhattan counterpart Alvin Bragg is also expected to seek more charges against more suspects in last week's NYPD attack – video of which shocked the country and led to outrage when most of the suspects were released from custody without having to post bail.
Just one of seven suspects was held in city jail after his arraignment last week. Another, Jhoan Boada, 22, left court without having to post bond and gave photographers two middle fingers as his friend mocked them.
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The friend, 19-year-old Yoiber Martinez, was later arrested outside a massive migrant shelter in Manhattan on charges of disorderly conduct, drug possession and disrupting traffic. Before his arrest, witness video shows him playing footage of the NYPD attack on his phone for other men at the shelter, which houses illegal immigrants and other migrants.
Martinez has 15 pending theft charges, including a half-dozen felonies, stemming from an arrest in November.
The NYPD identified the assault suspects as Boada, Yohenry Brito, 24, Jandry Barros, 21, Darwin Andres Gomez Izquiel, 19, Kelvin Servat Arocha, 19, Wilson Juarez, 21, and Yorman Reveron, 24.
Reveron has two pending cases in Manhattan for assault and robbery. Barros' charges in the officer assault were dropped by Bragg's office, citing a lack of evidence, but he has an open case in Queens on counts of resisting arrest, petit larceny and criminal possession of stolen property.
At a press conference Friday, Gov. Kathy Hochul said she wanted to speak with Bragg about why most of the suspects were released without bail and said prosecutors should have sought to keep them jailed.
"Certainly an assault on a police officer is bail eligible," Hochul told reporters. "There are over 100 crimes that also can lead to deportation, and so that is also something I want to have a conversation with the district attorney about – his options here."
Bragg, who met with the governor earlier but did not take part in the news briefing, declined to comment when asked by Fox News why five of the suspects were released.
