Sources: Aide to Mayor Eric Adams robbed by armed men in Brooklyn
NEW YORK -- An aide to Mayor Eric Adams was robbed Tuesday morning in Brooklyn, and police sources say the suspects were armed.
As CBS2's Kevin Rincon reports, 33-year-old Chris Baugh was walking down York Street at Hudson Avenue in Vinegar Hill, when he was confronted by two men. Police sources say they blocked his path and demanded his phone and wallet, before pushing him to the ground.
Baugh told them, "You don't want to do this, I work for the mayor," according to sources.
That's when one of the men lifted his shirt, exposing a handgun. They then ripped Baugh's phone from his pocket, along with his wallet.
We're told Baugh then walked down the block to a police tow pound where he called 911.
The mayor's office released the following statement:
"Chris works hard for the city every day, and he deserves to be safe while conducting his job, just like every other New Yorker. Public safety has been Mayor Adams' top priority since day one and that is why the NYPD is working diligently every day to reduce crime. As the mayor said today, he wants results as quickly as possible, and while we have seen progress over the last few months — taking more than 3,000 guns off the streets and reducing shootings and homicides by double digits — there is no overnight fix. Today's incident only further highlights the urgency to get dangerous guns and dangerous people off our streets as quickly as possible. New York City employees are city residents, and we will do everything in our power to keep all New Yorkers safe."
There has been pressure on the mayor and his administration to curb gun violence in the city.
Tuesday, CBS2 political reporter Marcia Kramer asked Adams, "Is it time, in a controlled fashion, for the city to think about going back to stop, question and frisk to get the guns off the street?"
"Stop, question and frisk has not stopped. We're just not breaking the law," he said. "I made it clear on many occasions, as much as I try to articulate this that we want officers to use every tool that's available within the law to go after those who are carrying guns."
Some say that tactic unfairly targets communities of color, and critics have argued there are other options that the NYPD has to stop crime but are not fully utilized.
They say employing people who know the streets, known as violence interrupters, and other community programs for positive activities are underfunded.
The two suspects in Tuesday morning's robbery did get away. One was on foot, the other was on a Citi Bike.
So far, no word of an arrest in this case.