HIKIND QUESTIONS DELAY IN BORO PARK’S SUBWAY MUGGING ARREST

NEWS FROM
ASSEMBLYMAN DOV HIKIND

April 4, 2013

Contact: Yehudah Meth                                                       For Immediate Release
718-853-9616 (office)
 

HIKIND QUESTIONS DELAY IN
BORO PARK’S SUBWAY MUGGING ARREST

PUT 120 SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS
IN TRAIN STATIONS TO CURTAIL CRIMES

“THE CRIME HAPPENED 3 WEEKS BEFORE
VIDEO WAS RELEASED. WHY?”

Assemblyman Dov Hikind (D-Brooklyn) has nothing but the highest praise for New York’s Finest and was delighted by yesterday’s arrest in connection with the attack of a 56-year-old woman at the F train station ON 18^th Avenue in Borough Park. But Assemblyman Hikind is very concerned about what appears to be a delay in the process and is asking why the video footage of the mugging was not released earlier.

“We spent more than $1 million to protect our community and the people who come here by installing video surveillance cameras,” said Hikind, who put 120 security cameras in the nine stations in his district. Boro Park’s N train, D train and F train stops are blanketed by cameras designed to give police an added advantage and deter crime. The Assemblyman has contacted NYPD Transit Chief Joe Fox to ask why there was a delay in utilizing this equipment.

“There have been nearly 4,000 robberies in New York City this year but apprehending criminals and terrorists is much easier when video is available. That’s why it’s concerning that this crime in our community took place on March 9^th but the video was not made public until April 2nd. What happened during the three weeks prior?”

An arrest was made just two days after the video was released. If public circulation of videos and photos of crime suspects are valuable to investigations, why delay the release of this video?

Assemblyman Hikind also noted that the toll booth at the F train station on 18^th Avenue, where the recent crime occurred, is supposed to be manned 24 hours/day, and that two security monitors face the booth, in full view of the booth’s clerk.  “At 2:40 a.m., when the crime was reported to have occurred, it’s unlikely that many Metro cards were being sold,” said Hikind. “So what was the clerk doing? How could they have missed this event?”

In 2005, Assemblyman Hikind secured funding for Boro Park’s closed-circuit TVs and followed through with their installation along three train lines:
N train stations at 8^th Avenue & 62^nd Street, and Fort Hamilton Parkway & 62^nd Street
D train stations at Fort Hamilton Parkway & New Utrecht Avenue, 50^th Street & New Utrecht Avenue, and 55^th Street & New Utrecht Avenue
F train stations at Ditmas Avenue & McDonald Avenue, 18^th Avenue & McDonald Avenue, Avenue I & McDonald Avenue, and Avenue N & McDonald Avenue

Last year, the Assemblyman also announced another wave of cutting-edge security cameras for his community. The Leiby Kletzky Security Initiative, which is still in the planning stages, will blanket Boro Park and Midwood in an effort to prevent street crime, vandalism, terrorism and kidnapping.

In 2005, Assemblyman Hikind had 120 state-of-the-art surveillance cameras installed in nine Boro Park subway stations.

Two security monitors face the 18^th Ave. train station toll booth, in full view of the booth’s clerk.