Sliwa to AOC: Pony up reward for Queens mass shooting
Republican New York City mayoral nominee Curtis Sliwa is challenging Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) to join him in putting up a reward for information leading to an arrest in the stunning Queens shooting that left 10 people wounded over the weekend.
The bipartisan gambit came Tuesday morning when a beret-clad Sliwa stood outside the North Corona laundromat where the shooting took place to throw down the gauntlet to AOC — a move he described as “outreach to those who are not necessarily in league with the concept that I am promoting in this mayoral election.”
Sliwa is considered a longshot candidate against Democratic nominee Eric Adams, given New York City’s overwhelmingly Dem majority.
“I’m hoping that she will respond,” said Sliwa, who was flanked by members of the Guardian Angels, a crime prevention group he founded in 1979. “Fear, fright and hysteria are gripping people as they’ve been asked to come forward with any information that can lead to the capture, the arrest and the indictment of the young men responsible.”
Police said Monday that the shooting was the result of a yearslong feud between rival street gangs, the Queens-based ABK, or “Always Banging Kings,” and the Trinitarios, who are mainly based in the Bronx. The Saturday shooting has been linked to the murder of Aldair Melchior, who was shot dead on July 18, according to sources.
Earlier in the day, Sliwa, who already offered a $20,000 reward for the capture of anyone connected with the shooting, made his AOC proposal public with a tweet in which he tagged the rising Democratic star, who has a sizable social media following.
“In the spirit of bi-partisanship we ask you @AOC to match my $20,000 reward in the mass shooting that took place in your district,” he wrote. “Today is #NationalNightOut Against Crime, it brings together #NYPD, officials & the community. Let’s kick it off with this increased reward together.”
The NYPD has also put up $10,000 as an incentive for people to come forward.
In North Corona, Sliwa suggested that AOC’s support might persuade people with knowledge of the attack who fear retribution to come forward.
“That is the biggest fear in this community, that if they’re identified or the police go away or no longer there’s a focus here, that they will be targeted,” he said. “What we want to do is prevent that by showing bipartisanship.”
A spokeswoman for AOC did not immediately respond.
