New York, Erie County rejects New York migrants over Buffalo sexual assault allegations
Mark Poloncarz, executive secretary for Upstate Erie County Democrats, said he is refusing to accept more migrants from New York City after two incidents of sexual assaults at Buffalo-area hotels housing asylum seekers last week.
Poloncarz said his reversal came after learning the facilities were unsafe, adding that “the trust and goodwill of Erie County has been betrayed.”
The county board said DocGo, a contractor hired by the Adams administration that provides services to the migrants resettled in the north of the state, may have “interfered” with the Cheektowaga police investigation into the second assault case.
DocGo was already the subject of complaints prior to the recent incident.
“I demanded [New York City] mayor [Eric] Adams is halting all further transport of asylum seekers into our community until we can resolve all security issues,” Poloncarz said during a news conference press conference on Saturday Posted by Spectrum News.
“He agreed and informed me that they will not be sending any more people to Erie County at this time. We also discussed the need for a new and improved safety plan.”
About 540 asylum seekers have been brought into Erie County, and officials are now demanding the asylum seekers be removed from the hotels.
According to authorities, an asylum seeker from the Democratic Republic of Congo was arrested on Friday and charged with sexual abuse and unlawful detention after he allegedly sexually assaulted an employee at the Best Western Hotel in Cheektowaga, near Buffalo Airport.
The arrest came just days after another Venezuelan migrant, also traveling from New York City, was charged with raping a woman in front of a three-year-old child at another hotel in Cheektowaga.
“Erie County has opened its arms to try and welcome these new Americans. Unfortunately, we believe that we cannot make the program sustainable in its current form without significant changes,” said Poloncarz.
“Our refugee agencies have done their best to provide support and assistance. But the trust and goodwill of our community has been betrayed,” he said.
The second victim was a 27-year-old Buffalo woman who worked at the Best Western and was employed by Platinum Community Care, one of the agencies providing services to the migrants, said Brian Gould, chief of the Cheektowaga Police Department.
“I am asking for the immediate cessation of use of the Best Western Hotel on Dinges Street,” Gould reportedly said on Saturday.
“The hotel is located in a residential area and raises not only security concerns but also quality of life issues for local residents. I am asking for additional funds to cover overtime so we can increase police presence around the hotels.”
The second sexual assault arrest in Erie County comes after Adams struck a deal with Gov. Kathy Hochul to relocate 1,200 migrant families outside of the Big Apple — the state’s most significant step in taking charge of the crisis, The Post reported over the weekend
The 13 shelters outside the city are manned by the National Guard.
Adams’ office had no immediate comment.
