Mayor Adams Insists Federal Government Must Stop “Constant Flow of Guns Coming into NYC”

By Yehudit Garmaise

The NYPD is working hard to remove guns from the streets, Mayor Eric Adams said this morning on ABC, however, the supply of guns is never-ending and comes in constant flows from outside the city.

Mayor Adams made a plea to the federal government to help stop the ever-replenished supply of guns to the city on Friday night, after 22-year old NYPD officer Jason Rivera was killed, and Officer Wilbert Mora was critically injured on Friday by a shooter in a domestic dispute in Harlem.

“There are no gun manufacturers in New York City,” said Mayor Adams in an emotional speech on Friday night, shortly after the shooting. “We don’t make guns here.

“Officers have taken thousands of guns off the streets, but they need help. The help is to stop the flow, and that is what the federal government must do.”

On Friday night, 47-year-old Lashawn McNeil, who had come to Harlem from Baltimore to help his mother after she had a medical procedure, engaged in a dispute with his mother, who called 911. 

When three police officers quickly arrived on the scene, McNeil allegedly opened fire and struck two of the officers, killing Rivera and after firing a bullet in Mora’s brain, left him in critical condition and fighting for his life.

McNeil, who was on probation for a felony drug charge in New York City in 2003 and had five prior arrests on various charges, including assault on an officer and weapon possession, also has repeatedly posted posting anti-police and anti-government messages on social media, CBS2 reported.

As McNeil attempted to leave the apartment, a third officer fired twice on the perpetrator, who was struck in both the right arm and head, CBS2 reported.

At the scene, police recovered a gun that they believe McNeil purchased illegally in Baltimore. Investigators are also trying to determine the origin of the high-capacity ammunition clip McNeil possessed.

The injured officers and McNeil were taken to Harlem Hospital, where Rivera later died.

“At this moment, it’s about prayers,” Mayor Adams said yesterday. “We need New Yorkers to pray for the well-being of this officer whom we should all be proud of.”

The mayor continues to ask, however, “How are we removing thousands of guns off the street and they still find a way into New York City? 

“Into the hands of people that are killers, constantly carving highways of death, destroying our communities.”

“And if we don’t coordinate to go after those gun dealers who are supplying large cities in America such as New York, we are losing the battle, and the federal government must step in and play a role in doing so.”

Since Jan. 1, when Adams took office, five NYPD officers have been shot, including four just last week. On Thursday, NYPD Detective Dominick Libretti was shot during a drug bust on Staten Island, and last week, Officer Kaseem Pennant was shot in the leg while struggling with a teenage suspect in The Bronx.

“We have to stop the flow of guns,” Mayor Adams said on CNN. “We are removing thousands of guns off our streets, and it appears for every gun we’ve removed from the street, five are coming in. That is unacceptable.

“But if you continue to have the flow of guns to big cities,” he said, “you’re going to constantly fight this battle.”

As he has long promised, Mayor Adams also said he will be announcing this week the new version of the plainclothes anti-crime unit, “that is going to go after those known shooters and people are actually creating the devastation in our city,” he said.

The new units, which will be called “Neighborhood Safety Teams,” will replace the uniformed Public Safety Teams that the NYPD deployed in the areas where shootings surged last year, according to Chief of Department Ken Corey.

Photo by: Flickr