On Wednesday, New York City mayor Bill de Blasio voiced his concern over a viral video that shows two unmasked police officers forcibly removing a masked commuter from the subway.
As seen in the video, which surfaced online in the past week, two unmasked NYPD officers appeared to shove and forcefully remove a masked commuter from the 8th Street station platform after he allegedly asked why they weren’t wearing face coverings. After the clip made the rounds online, the NYPD confirmed the incident is under review, and the two officers involved have been sanctioned.
Per CNN, de Blasio said he was “troubled” by what he saw in the video, which can be seen below.
"I didn't like what I saw one bit," said the mayor during a news conference on Wednesday. "I saw the officers not wearing their masks in the subway. That's evident, that's unacceptable. We've given this instruction a thousand times, and if you're going to be in law enforcement, you actually have to participate in following the law. ... If you're in the subway, we're telling everyone in the subway you've got to wear a mask—that includes police officers. Period."
Andy Gilbert, who said he’s the man pushed around by the officers in the clip, was on his way to work when the incident went down. He asked the officers once about their lack of masks, and when he repeated himself one of the officers replied, “I can’t hear you through your mask,” Gilbert told CNN. He added that the male officer called him “disruptive,” and shoved him through the turnstiles.
Per the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s official guidelines, all who use the subway are required to wear a mask when in indoor stations and on trains. On Wednesday, NYPD commissioner Dermot Shea said the officers shown in the clip were patrol cops, and their behavior was “absolutely inexcusable.” While he said that there wouldn’t be any firings or suspensions over the video, there will be discipline of some kind.
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