What you should know
- Members of the Guardian Angels roughed up a man during a live interview with Fox News on Tuesday night, then misidentified him as a “migrant” in a prime-time segment meant to highlight the alleged disorder and crime caused by newcomers to New York City.
- The bizarre altercation unfolded as Curtis Sliwa, founder of the crime patrol group, spoke to Sean Hannity from Times Square, flanked by volunteers in their trademark red berets and bomber jackets.
- The man is not a migrant, but a New Yorker from the Bronx, police said Wednesday afternoon. Although Sliwa claimed that the man had been caught shoplifting, the police provided no evidence to support the allegation.
NEW YORK — Members of the Guardian Angels roughed up a man during a live interview with Fox News on Tuesday night, then misidentified him as a “migrant” in a prime-time segment meant to highlight the alleged disorder. and crime caused by newcomers to New York City.
The bizarre altercation unfolded as Curtis Sliwa, founder of the crime patrol group, spoke to Sean Hannity from Times Square, flanked by volunteers in their trademark red berets and bomber jackets.
As some Guardian Angels began to leave Sliwa’s side to attend to a disturbance off-screen, the camera panned to show them confronting an unidentified man, pushing him to the sidewalk and placing him in a headlock.
“In fact, our guys just brought one of the immigrants under control at the corner of 42nd and 7th, where all this happened,” Sliwa told Hannity. Raising his hands, he added: “They have taken over!”
The man is not a migrant, but a New Yorker from the Bronx, police said Wednesday afternoon. Although Sliwa claimed that the man had been caught shoplifting, the police provided no evidence to support the allegation.
According to a spokesperson for the New York City Police Department, officers arrived to find a man “detained by bystanders” after he allegedly attempted to interrupt a live interview. Police said the man was issued a citation for disorderly conduct because he was acting loud and threatening on a public sidewalk.
The spokesperson did not respond to questions about whether any members of the Guardian Angels were under investigation for their role in the altercation.
The incident came after a fight in Times Square between police and a group of men, some migrants, sparked waves of backlash against the city’s asylum seekers. Some immigrant advocates have blamed local officials and the police department for stoking fears of an “immigration crime wave,” even as the city’s crime rate remains virtually unchanged since the arrival of tens of thousands. of asylum seekers.
In an interview with The Associated Press, Sliwa said he had believed the man was a migrant because “he spoke Spanish” and because other Guardian Angels had encountered him along with other Spanish speakers on previous patrols.
“They put him under control so he wouldn’t hurt himself or anyone else,” Sliwa said.
The Guardian Angels have been a fixture in New York since 1979, when Sliwa founded them to patrol the streets and subways during the city’s high crime days. They have drawn criticism in the past, including accusations of attacking people of color. Sliwa also admitted years ago that he had made up some of the group’s early exploits for publicity purposes.
City Councilman Erik Bottcher, who represents the area around Times Square, said the group should not detain people without legal authority.
“Vigilantism is not the answer,” Bottcher said. “When civilians take the law into their own hands, conflicts can escalate and lead to even more dangerous situations that put everyone at risk.”
In May, a US Navy veteran riding the subway strangled another passenger to prevent him from yelling at people on the train. The man, former subway artist Jordan Neely, died. Former Marine Daniel Penny has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter.
2024-02-08 20:19:20
#Guardian #Angels #attack #man #full #television #interview #wrongly #identifying #migrant
