NYC Mayor Adams under fire for asking store owners to confront potential criminals on removing masks

close

Video

NYC Mayor Adams urging shop owners to ask customers to lower masks to deter crime

President of New York Bodega and Small Business Association Francisco Marte says it is 'wrong' for the mayor to put the burden on stores to enforce the initiative.

As small businesses in New York City continue to face violence, Mayor Eric Adams is now asking stores to force customers to unmask at store entrances to deter crime.

"Do not allow people to enter the store without taking off their face mask and then once they’re inside they can continue to wear if they so desire to do so," Adams told 1010-WINS.

"When you see these mask-wearing people, oftentimes it’s not about being fearful of the pandemic. It’s fearful of the police catching [them] for their deeds."

President of New York Bodega and Small Business Association Francisco Marte pushed back on Adams' unmasking call, arguing that while it's a "great idea," it's unfair of Adams to put the burden on fearful store employees to confront potential criminals.

NYC RAPE SUSPECT REPORTEDLY TURNED IN BY FAMILY, ARRESTED

"For the bodega worker or owner to enforce the rules is wrong," Marte told "America's Newsroom" Tuesday. "That's going to bring more problems, and we're going to suffer more with our relationships within the community." 

"We don't have the protection," he continued. "We cannot do that… [if] they want to do that, do it [with the] law… then we can enforce that."

Mayor Eric Adams attends a joint press briefing with Governor Kathy Hochul on subway safety at Fulton Transit Center. (Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Marte agreed with a Manhattan NYPD officer who told the New York Post that store owners do not want "unnecessary confrontation with a possible criminal" and called on the mayor to focus on changing the laws instead.

"They should be stopped by the police or searched… why do they want the store owner to do that? We don't have the means to do that," he said.

Marte, a who has lived in the Big Apple for over three decades, said people are scared in the city and crime is the worst he has ever experienced because criminals are not prosecuted. 

"Before [criminals] were afraid of the police and getting caught because you knew there were going to be consequences," he said.

Marte is headed to Albany, N.Y., to urge state officials to address public safety. 

"What we need is to work with our elected officials and bring public safety back, because New York is a great city," he said.

Video

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Adams' call for unmasking at store entrances comes amid an investigation into a suspect accused of murdering a bodega worker on the Upper East Side on Friday.

The alleged perpetrator arrived to the bodega on a scooter in a hazmat suit, and authorities said in a Monday press conference that they expect the robbery is connected with three others in the Bronx.

A recent report by the New York City Police Department showed a 10% drop in retail theft reports in February compared to the previous year without a clear explanation, according to the New York Post.

Robberies, burglaries, felony assault, grand larceny and other crimes continued in the city, marking an increase of such crimes by 22% compared to 2021.

Fox News' Jon Brown contributed to this report.