Latest news with #EricAdams
New York Post
5 hours ago
- Politics
- New York Post
NYC Council trashes Mayor Adams over Sanitation budget cuts
Mayor Eric Adams is losing his 'war on rats' — in large part because his administration refuses to fully fund a Sanitation Department unit dealing with a backlog of more than 1,700 garbage-strewn lots that need to be cleaned, a majority of City Council members said this week. Council Minority Leader Joann Ariola (R-Queens) fired off a bipartisan letter last week to the mayor signed by 30 council members demanding the city pump another $2.6 million yearly into agency's Lot Cleaning Unit back to pre-pandemic levels of 108 employees in 2019. The unit has since shrunk to 10 workers assigned to clean city-owned lots and vacant lots in the five boroughs. Advertisement 4 This debris-filled vacant lot on Baltimore Street on Staten Island is one more than 1,700 such abandoned or city-owned lots on a waiting list for the Sanitation Department of clean, according to the City Council. Obtained by the New York Post 'These [lots] are not only unsightly and unsafe, but they are also infested with rats and other vermin that spread disease,' Ariola wrote. 'Considering the resources your administration has poured into its 'War on Rats,' we expected that tackling these filthy areas in every borough would be a priority.' Advertisement Adams' proposed budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1 includes $820,277 for lot cleaning, increases the unit's staff to 15 and it's funding to $1.6 million by fiscal 2029. 4 Twenty-nine City Council members signed off a letter demanding Mayor Eric Adams pour another $2.6 million yearly into cleaning up vacant lots. Luiz Rampelotto/ZUMA / That's not enough, said council members who have been forced to use their discretionary funds to supplement nonprofits and city sanitation workers cleaning filthy weed-strewn lots and traffic medians. 4 Council Minority Leader Joann Ariola (R-Queens) suggested in the letter that Adams is losing his 'war on rats' – in large part because his administration refuses to properly fund the Sanitation Department. Michael Nagle Advertisement 'Having a severely deficient lot cleaning program only undermines other efforts by DSNY and your administration to 'Get Stuff Clean,'' wrote Ariola, referring to the mayor's campaign to cleanup city streets. 'It also sends a hypocritical message to New Yorkers that, while residents are required to comply with the rules, to containerize their garbage and clean their own properties or else face fines and penalties, their own city government has no such responsibility. 'We once again ask that you provide DSNY the funding they need to rectify this problem.' 4 A debris-filled vacant lot on Chandler Street in Far Rockaway. Obtained by the New York Post Advertisement The backlog of vacant lots desperately needing a cleaning include one on Chandler Street near Motts Basin in Far Rockaway, Queens, and another disaster at 75 Baltimore Street in Great Kills, Staten Island, according to council members. Both are garbage-filled, weed-strewn eyesores that have become neighborhood dumping grounds covered with abandoned shopping carts, mattresses, furniture and other debris. Rodent complaints to 311 spiked nearly 8% during Adams first two years in office — despite his ballyhooed multi-million dollar war on rats and vow from Day One to make headway against the vermin, The Post has reported. Updated statistics were not immediately available. Sanitation Department spokesman Joshua Goodman insisted Mayor Adams proposed budget for next fiscal year 'makes greater investments in a cleaner city than ever before.' 'The increased funding for cleaning vacant lots allows us to focus on those that pose health risks, those located near schools or parks, and those receiving 311 service requests – not just in the coming year, but for years to come,' he said. 'We can always do more with more, and we look forward to working with the Council to ensure resources are allocated efficiently to areas of greatest need.'
Fox News
a day ago
- Business
- Fox News
NYPD officers entangled in crypto torture case after Bitcoin investor escaped from townhouse of horrors
Two New York Police Department officers could find themselves in hot water over potential connections to a shocking case of torture in the stately SoHo district of Manhattan. The NYPD confirmed to Fox News Digital that its officers "were modified" and "the matter is under internal review." The issue involves two detectives, one of whom reportedly served on Mayor Eric Adams' security detail, the New York Post reported. The case at the heart of the scandal is tied to two men who allegedly tortured an Italian cryptocurrency millionaire in a New York City townhouse. One detective is suspected of driving the alleged victim, a 22-year-old Italian Bitcoin millionaire, from the airport to the townhouse where the savagery occurred on the day he arrived in New York, according to the Post. The other is accused of working with the man's alleged captors, John Woeltz and William Duplessie, in an "unauthorized capacity." Woeltz, 37, and Duplessie, 33, are accused of kidnapping the man, a former business partner, on May 6 and torturing him when he refused to reveal his Bitcoin password. A criminal complaint obtained by Fox News says the brutality lasted for nearly three weeks. The pair allegedly shocked the man with electric wires, bashed his head with a firearm, pointed a firearm at his head and threatened to kill him and his family, and hung him over a second-floor ledge. Eventually, the man escaped the residence and flagged down a traffic cop. Both suspects have now been charged with assault, kidnapping in the first degree, unlawful imprisonment in the first degree and criminal possession of a firearm. Woeltz was arrested last Friday, just after the man escaped. Duplessie turned himself in on Tuesday. The latter reportedly appeared in front of a judge in a Manhattan courtroom Friday, waiting to be officially indicted. He is being held without bail.
Bloomberg
a day ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
NYC Bitcoin-Bond Idea Squashed by Comptroller as ‘Irresponsible'
By Teresa Xie and Save New York City Comptroller Brad Lander poured cold water on Mayor Eric Adams's proposal to issue municipal bonds backed by Bitcoin. Lander, who shares responsibility for debt issuance with the Mayor's Office of Management and Budget, said the largest US city won't be issuing Bitcoin-backed bonds while he's in office. Lander, a Democrat, is also a candidate to succeed Adams in November's mayoral election. Adams is running as an independent.
CBS News
a day ago
- General
- CBS News
NYC among 3 dozen Tri-State area cities named on Trump administration's list targeting sanctuary policies
President Trump's executive order to crack down on sanctuary policies names three dozen cities around New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. Executive Order 14287: Protecting American Communities from Criminal Aliens required the list be published to identify sanctuary jurisdictions based on factors like compliance with federal law enforcement, information restrictions and legal protections for migrants who entered the country illegally. The Department of Homeland Security posted the list Friday, alleging these jurisdictions are "deliberately and shamefully obstructing the enforcement of federal immigration laws endangering American communities." "Sanctuary cities protect dangerous criminal aliens from facing consequences and put law enforcement in peril," the release said. DHS said each jurisdiction will receive a formal notice of its non-compliance with federal statutes, ordering an immediate review and revision of their policies to align with federal immigration laws. The release noted that the list can be changed at any time and will be updated regularly. New York cities on DHS sanctuary list New York State is named on the list, along with a dozen cities, including New York City. Gov. Kathy Hochul is scheduled to answer questions about the state's sanctuary status next month during a House committee hearing on Capitol Hill. Mayor Eric Adams previously joined the mayors of Boston, Chicago and Denver to address the city's policies, as well. Albany Beacon East Hampton Hudson Ithaca Kingston New Paltz New York City Newburgh Poughkeepsie Rochester Syracuse The following 15 counties are also listed for their sanctuary status: Albany, Dutchess, Monroe, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Saratoga, Suffolk, Sullivan, Tompkins, Ulster, Warren, Wayne, Westchester and Yates. New Jersey cities on DHS sanctuary list New Jersey is also on the list, along with 18 cities and Burlington, Cumberland and Warren counties. Last week, the Justice Department sued Newark, Hoboken, Jersey City, Paterson, and their respective mayors, of their sanctuary policies. Asbury Park Bloomfield Camden East Orange Hoboken Jersey City Leonia Linden Maplewood Montclair Township Newark North Bergen Paterson Plainfield Prospect Park South Orange Trenton Union City Connecticut cities on DHS sanctuary list Connecticut is listed along with its Tri-State neighbors and the following six cities: East Haven Hamden Hartford New Haven New London Windham The overall list names cities in three dozen states across the country. By and large, the Trump administration has not been successful challenging sanctuary city laws. Several prior rulings have said the feds cannot use spending powers, or withhold funds, to coerce compliance with immigration laws. Courts have also ruled that state and local governments have autonomy to determine their own policies. contributed to this report.
BBC News
a day ago
- General
- BBC News
Bernard Kerik, head of New York police during 9/11, dies at 69
Bernard Kerik, New York City's former police commissioner during the 11 September 2001 attacks, has died aged death was confirmed by FBI Director Kash Patel, who said the former police officer died Thursday after a "private battle with illness."Kerik oversaw the police response to the deadliest terrorist attack in US history, and was later appointed by former US President George Bush as head of a provisional police force in pleaded guilty to charges of tax fraud in 2009 and served three years in prison, though he was pardoned by President Donald Trump in 2020. Those who paid tribute to Kerik include former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, who was in office when Kerik served as commissioner of the NYPD, and current mayor Eric Adams."We've been together since the beginning. He's like my brother," Giuiliani said Thursday on his show. "I was a better man for having known Bernie," Giuiliani said. "I certainly was a braver and stronger man."Adams, who had been friends with Kerik for nearly 30 years, said he had visited him in hospital before his death."He was with his loved ones who are in my prayers tonight," Adams said in a statement. "He was a great New Yorker and American."Kerik, a former army veteran and a decorated law enforcement officer, rose up the ranks through his career, and was nearly tapped to run the Department of Homeland Security under Bush in 2004 before he abruptly withdrew his 2009, Kerik pleaded guilty to federal charges after he was accused of lying to investigators about interest-free loans he received from an Israeli billionaire and a New York real estate magnet while he was in public was granted a full pardon by Trump in 2020, and later joined Giuiliani's efforts to overturn Trump's election loss that same year.
