Nearly 100 illegal scooters were seized from Queens streets and sidewalks in the latest clampdown on menacing mopeds, authorities said Thursday.
A four-day blitz by Queens District Attorney’s Office detectives and NYPD cops hauled in 99 unregistered and uninsured scooters, prosecutors said.
All the illegal mopeds, plus another five legit scooters, were parked illegally across Corona, Elmhurst, Jackson Heights and beyond during the crackdown’s span starting June 4 and ending Tuesday, officials said.
Nearly 100 illegal mopeds were seized by Queens district attorney’s office detectives and NYPD officers in four days. Queens District Attorney's Office
Illegal scooters have been used to carry out violent crimes, said Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz. Queens District Attorney's Office“Illegal scooters have become a significant concern in our city, as we see them increasingly being used while carrying out violent crimes,” said Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz in a statement.
The crack down is part of a citywide push against migrant moped gangs who have been tied to 400 percent spike in scooters being used as getaway vehicles in major felonies since 2022.
Recently arrived migrants have been tied to 80% of moped-assisted robberies, The Post revealed in a front-page report.
Migrant moped gangs have been tied to snatch and grabs across the city. New York PostOne such migrant — Bernardo Raul Castro Mata, 19, accused of shooting two cops June 3 while riding a scooter — told police he was recruited into a “snatch and grab” gang.
Queens prosecutors didn’t return a request for comment about whether the recent moped crackdown involved scooters at an East Elmhurst shelter where Mata stayed.
More than 500 scooters have been seized since February by detectives and cops, prosecutors said.
