NYC parks employee handcuffs teen selling fruit in Battery Park
NYC parks employee handcuffs teen selling fruit in Battery Park
A shocking video has surfaced showing an NYC Parks employee handcuffing a 14-year-old girl in Battery Park. Allegedly, she was arrested selling fruit without a license. The incident occurred on Sunday afternoon. It was captured on video and shared on social media. The footage shows a parks employee grabbing the girl, who had one hand handcuffed. Meanwhile, angry bystanders shout and try to intervene.
Bystanders can be heard yelling “Let her go!” and demanding a female worker handle the situation. Some even tried to pull the girl away from the parks employee and an NYPD officer, who was also involved in the altercation. The struggle escalated, resulting in the girl and the parks employee tumbling to the ground before she managed to break free.
According to Marc Rebillet, who recorded the video, parks employees were attempting to detain the girl and her family for selling fruit from an unlicensed cart. Rebillet noted that the NYPD initially tried to detain the girl but released her, after which the parks employee intervened. The mother was also arrested during the incident.
Rebillet criticized the handling of the situation, stating, “Okay, fine, talk to the parents. DONT CUFF THE KID. Embarrassing and dangerous behavior.” He also mentioned seeing parks officers attempting to dispose of the unlicensed fruit cart.
The New York City Department of Parks and Recreation stated that their first course of action is to educate violators but added that repeated lawbreaking leads to arrests. The NYPD supported the parks employees, stating they were assisting as the employees were being assaulted by bystanders.
The 32-year-old mother received a desk appearance ticket, while the parks officials filed a juvenile report regarding the incident with the 14-year-old girl. The department is currently investigating the incident.
Source: NY Post