Is Trump Tower Security Diverting Police Officers In Brownsville And East New York?

BROWNSVILLE-EAST NEW YORK, BROOKLYN — Council Member Rafael Espinal's office is looking into the possibility that the massive Trump Tower security undertaking is stealing officers from Brownsville and East New York precincts, a representative from his office told Patch. While Espinal could not verify independently whether it was true that the NYPD was taking officers from the precincts he oversees, his office "would like to look further into this issue," the rep said.

"If it is proven to be true, that would be outrageous, and Council Member Espinal will stand with his colleagues in asking the NYPD to return those officers to the community," a rep responded.

Espinal's inquiry came after some local politicians expressed concern that the hefty security allotted to Trump Tower by the NYPD — which costs the city $500,000 every single day — could be taking resources away from high-crime neighborhood precincts in the NYC metro area.

City Council Member Donovan Richards Jr., who covers The Rockaways in Brooklyn, heard from some of the local precinct commanders that they were losing officers, and the commanders were concerned it was due to Trump Tower, his press secretary, Jordan Gibbons, told Patch.

"We don't want this to be a reoccurring thing, where officers aren't where they need to be because of the president-elect at Trump Tower," Gibbons said. "If every day he's here, there's whatever amount of officers being diverted from precincts all over the city."

Richards Jr. at a City Hall meeting Tuesday night grilled James Kehoe, executive officer of Patrol Borough Manhattan South, about whether Trump Tower security would cause a spike in crime in neighborhoods from which officers have been transferred to secure the tower, DNAInfo reported.

"Communities like Brownsville, southeast Queens, Far Rockaway, where crime is an issue, you're diverting officers from there," Richards Jr. said to Kehoe. "Do you anticipate that as you continue to take away from these commands, crime could increase?"

Richards continued when Kehoe did not answer his question directly, according to DNAInfo.

"I would assume if there are 100 officers who are normally staffed at a precinct, now there are 70 officers every day, you wouldn't say that you're taking away from community policing?" Richards Jr. continued. "I know this is no fault of yours, this is more aimed at the President-elect, because we wouldn't be in this predicament obviously if he wasn't staying in New York City. But is this moving us away from the goal of moving toward a community policing model in New York City?"

Kehoe called this "speculation," DNAInfo reported.

Lead photo via Gage Skidmore/Flickr/CC by 3.0