Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez described members of the New York Police Department as “monsters” after officers displayed a haul of stolen merchandise they had recovered following arrests, that was made up of different types of children’s medicine, diapers and hygiene products.
Police posted the picture to Twitter and later deleted it, but not before people had taken screenshots of the image.
Alongside the image of the police and the haul of moastly baby-related essentials, NYPD posted: “After recieving numerous larceny complaints in the Bronx, officers from @NYPD4Pct recently arrested 12 individuals followung an enforcement initiative targeting shoplifters.
“The arrests made led to the closure of 23 warrants and the recovery of $1800 worth of merchandise.”
Posting one of the screenshots, the New York Democrat tweeted: “When I talk about violent conditions, this is what I mean.
“But hey, it’s much easier to frame people who steal baby formula and medicine as monsters to be jailed than acknowledge our politics and economic priorities create conditions where people steal baby formula to survive.”
She followed up her post with a comment saying: “Child tax credit expired Dec 31st and it was many people’s lifeline to feed and clothe their kids.
“Politicians let it expire overnight with a shrug, but now want to feed into the sensationalism around crime acting like shoplifting has nothing to do with their actions. Wild.”
