New York City Mayor Eric Adams unveiled the city’s newest initiative to combat the rise in crime, which he described as a “panic button” for bodegas to alert local police.
The new buttons, called “SilentShields” in an online press release, are a $1.6 million investment by the city and are being given to 500 different bodega stores across the five boroughs. Adams explained that these buttons will be connected “directly” to local precincts, and will give access to cameras within these stores to see what is happening and provide an “immediate response.”
Last month, four armed robbers disguised as police officers entered a store in Brooklyn, where they are accused of zip tying a 46-year-old employee, hitting another one, and forcing a 60-year-old worker and customer to sit on the floor at gunpoint. The thieves left the scene with a bag of lottery tickets.
In a separate incident, Tyrell Mata, 29, attempted to stab two bodega employees in the Bronx with a butcher knife. Mata was arrested and charged with felony assault, menacing, and weapons possession.
“And so to the people who are preying on bodegas, you are not going to know what 500 stores they’re going to be in,” Adams said. “So every store you walk in, there’s a potentiality that they are going to be alarmed with the panic button and a direct communication with the police.”
Adams continued that these buttons would not be used when someone has a “simple dispute” with stores, and that bodega owners and employees would be trained to use their SilentShields. The mayor also stated that “working-class people deserve to be safe” in New York City.
First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro also celebrated the new panic buttons, claiming they would “save lives” and protect bodegas.
The panic buttons have been a welcome announcement for bodega workers like Abdul Saleh, an employee at Sal’s Deli. He described to ABC 7NY how people get shot and killed in robberies at these stores. However, the police “never responds quick,” stating the authorities arrive up to four hours late.
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The SilentShields will be distributed to the United Bodega Association through an emergency grant.
Ahead of Sunday’s announcement, Adams increased spending in New York City’s newly proposed $115 billion budget, providing little room for economic or federal funding uncertainty. Despite this, the mayor was confident it would be the “best budget ever” and boost the city’s hopes of funding initiatives directed at crime, education, and affordable housing.