NYPD Installing Cameras in Boro Park, Williamsburg, Crown Heights

New York – The police department will be installing 100 new security cameras in the predominately Orthodox Jewish neighborhoods of Boro Park, Williamsburg and Crown Heights to better protect residents amid an unprecedented surge of anti-Semitic violence.
Mayor Bill  de Blasio said on Friday that the first 30 cameras will be installed by March. The NYPD will then work with community members to identify the best locations for the remaining 70.

The announcement comes as some have questioned the mayor’s commitment to cracking down on hate crime. State Sen. Simcha Felder last week called on de Blasio to resign, though few have supported the call and both Satmar kehillas criticized the move.

De Blasio has gone on an offensive to shore up his support in the Jewish community. He appeared in an interview in Mishpacha Magazine last week, and was scheduled to go on Leon Goldenberg’s Motzei Shabbos radio show, Community Matters.

the NYPD has increased deployment in these neighborhoods, and now have over 150 additional officers patrolling and building relationships in the community. The NYPD’s Intelligence Bureau has also launched a new unit to detect, prevent and investigate domestic terrorism and organized hate groups.

“An attack on the Jewish community is an attack on all New Yorkers,” de Blasio said in a statement on Friday. “These new security cameras will increase the NYPD’s visibility into these neighborhoods, and help our officers on the ground keep New Yorkers safe.”