Vandalism Strikes: NYPD Special Team’s Patrol Cars Targeted Amid Controversial Budget Cut Proposal

Authorities reported on Tuesday that vandals targeted seven marked NYPD vehicles, slashing their tires while they were parked outside a Brooklyn facility.

The damaged police cars were discovered around 4:30 p.m. on Monday, stationed in front of the Strategic Response Group 3 headquarters on Coney Island Avenue, near Caton Place in the Windsor Terrace neighborhood, just outside Prospect Park.

As of Tuesday, police had not released a description of the vandals or the tools used in the tire-slashing incident, and no arrests had been made.

This act of vandalism came on the heels of another incident earlier in the day, where a “disorderly group” hurled snowballs at NYPD officers. The officers had responded to a scene at Washington Square Park where winter festivities had spiraled into chaos, as captured in video footage.

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch publicly criticized the chaotic behavior as “disgraceful” and “criminal,” a sentiment echoed by department unions who expressed their disapproval.

The NYPD’s Strategic Response Group (SRG) is tasked with handling citywide mobilizations, civil disturbances, and major events, underscoring the importance of the operations affected by these acts of vandalism.

They also mobilize for emergency events like shootings and bank robberies, according to the department’s website.

During Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s campaign last year, he had vowed to disband the elite task force. 

“As Mayor, I will disband the SRG, which has cost taxpayers millions in lawsuit settlements and brutalized countless New Yorkers exercising their First Amendment rights,” he wrote just two months after announcing his candidacy for mayor.