Dozens of illegal dirt bikes and All Terrain Vehicles seized by New York police this year were bulldozed into scrap metal to send out a "very strong message" that they posed danger not only for the riders but also to the public.
New York's police Commissioner Bill Bratton and other senior NYPD officials watched with glee the destruction at Red Hook's Erie Basin Auto Pound in Brooklyn yesterday.
Bratton watched as 69 dirt bikes and eight ATVs were lined up between concrete barricades and two bulldozers on either end then rolled repeatedly over them.
Rusted, battered red, green, and blue Suzukis, Yamahas, and Hondas, some with racing numbers and stickers, popped and cracked under the weight of the bulldozers, the New York Daily News reported.
Bratton relished the moment, describing the vehicles as "destroyed, flattened, crushed."
"We want to send out a very strong message to the nitwits and knuckleheads who insist on operating these illegal vehicles on the streets, sidewalks, parks, and housing developments of the city of New York, creating dangers not only for themselves but more importantly members of the publics," he said.
Bratton has been on a campaign recently against the menacing annoyance.
Every year, as the weather warms, New Yorkers complain of people speeding and popping wheelies on dirt bikes and ATVs, thundering through residential areas without mufflers.
The machines are banned here because they cannot be insured for city streets.
"Last year we had five deaths related to ATVs, minibikes, and these off-the-road type vehicles - this year we've had zero," Bratton said.
"We're clearly sending a message that we're crushing them, we have crushed them, and we'll continue to crush them," he added.
