The New York City Sheriff's Office seized and towed 54 vehicles in a pre-dawn operation in Brooklyn on Friday, claiming drivers of these vehicles had accumulated nearly 900 red light, speeding, and bus lane camera violations totaling over $100,000.
Deputies used a license plate reader to identify some of the vehicles found within the 67th, 70th, and 71st precincts in central and east Brooklyn, according to a press release. The Sheriff's Road Patrol unit also identified the vehicles through physical patrols within the precincts. Once the vehicles were identified, they towed to a parking lot.
The crackdown is part of the sheriff's regular traffic camera enforcement program that impounds vehicles found to have a minimum of $350 worth of unpaid traffic camera violation tickets. It also comes amid an increase in the number of vehicle-related fatalities over the past year. So far, 189 people have been killed in vehicle-related crashes, compared to 150 the same time a year ago, according to statistics tracked by the NYPD.
Last week, a hit-and-run driver killed a three-month-old baby in Brooklyn. Police arrested Tyrik Mott, 28, who they identified as the driver. Mott reportedly had over 90 speeding tickets.
READ MORE: Advocates Blame Mayor De Blasio For Death Of 3-Month-Old Killed by Driver
The seizure adds to the nearly 17,000 vehicles confiscated by the sheriff's office since it resumed its weekly Scofflaw Enforcement Program in February this year. Deputies identified a total of 164,508 violations in connection to the seized vehicles between February and August—133,729 for speed camera offenses, 13,701 red light violations, and 17,078 for bus lane offenses.
Drivers must pay their tickets before they can recover their vehicles. If the tickets aren't paid, then the sheriff or marshal's office can sell the car at auction.
