Looters flooded shuttered stores in upstate New York this weekend after a deadly blizzard rocked the region, taking dozens of lives and stalling police patrols.
New York State Police confirmed at least two reports of looting in the snowy city of Buffalo on Sunday. However, videos and images on social media suggest many more may surface in the coming days.
Footage of looted stores submitted to local Buffalo NBC affiliate WGRZ showed broken windows and ransacked shelves. While liberal-led New York grapples with a state-wide rise in overall crime, it appears some Buffalo-area crooks saw this deadly blizzard as a prime opportunity.
Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown ridiculed the criminals on Monday saying, “I don’t know how these people can even live with themselves, how they can look at themselves in the mirror”. He went on to call them the “lowest of the low”.
Meanwhile, Erie County is scrambling to catch up with the wave of death this week’s blizzard brought with it. Erie County Executive Mark Poloncartz told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer, “We’ve had so many bodies that various hospitals are full and we’re just having to go through and determine if the individuals have died from a blizzard-related death.” He added that additional bodies are being brought to temporary morgues, suggesting the death toll may likely rise.
Very sadly, the @ECDOH Medical Examiner has confirmed another 2 deaths from the Blizzard. Total deaths are now 27. Of these:
– 3 were from an EMS Delay;
– 14 were found outside;
– 3 were from shoveling/blowing cardiac events;
– 4 were from no heat; &
– 3 were in a vehicle. pic.twitter.com/Om996bJMoo— Mark Poloncarz (@markpoloncarz) December 26, 2022
This weekend, upstate New York experienced a once-in-a-generation blizzard bringing more than 40 inches of snow to parts of the Buffalo area and crippling police response. Sub-zero temperatures, heavy snow, and delayed first responders are credited with many tragic deaths so far and city officials expect that number will rise.
Simultaneously, New York is experiencing a drastic spike in crime. According to the October crime report published by the NYPD, felony arrests are up a whopping 25.8% over last year. In October alone, auto thefts rose by 19.8% with grand larceny and burglary rising by nearly 10% each.
A recent report, titled “The Blue City Murder Problem,” released by the Heritage Foundation found that 90% of the top 30 crime-ridden cities in America are under liberal leadership. It finds that nearly every area implementing liberal “soft on crime” policies, including New York, has experienced an increase in crime, including violent and sexual offenses.
