Socialist mayoral frontrunner and Queens Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani � who stunned political observers by winning the Democratic nomination last month � has pledged to shut down one of the NYPD�s elite units, even as he praised first responders who raced to the scene of Monday�s deadly Park Avenue mass shooting.

�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,� Mamdani wrote in December 2024, just two months after launching his mayoral campaign.

The Strategic Response Group (SRG) is a specialized NYPD division deployed for large-scale incidents, including citywide mobilizations, civil unrest, and major emergencies. According to the NYPD, SRG teams also handle violent incidents such as shootings and bank robberies � like Monday�s attack, when SRG officers were among the first to storm the Park Avenue building and secure the scene.

Mamdani, who previously called to �Defund the Police� during the 2020 George Floyd protests, has faced mounting criticism for his long history of attacks against the NYPD.

Following Monday�s massacre, which left four dead � including an off-duty police officer � Mamdani posted on social media: �I am holding the victims, their families, and the NYPD officer in critical condition in my thoughts. Grateful for all of our first responders on the ground.�

Despite his statement of gratitude, SRG officers were among those first responders who risked their lives to contain the shooter � the same unit Mamdani has vowed to dismantle if he wins City Hall.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)