Sanchez asks BIC about towing industry and organized crime
Sanchez cites armed turf wars in the towing industry and asks if BIC could regulate towing. BIC says its current jurisdiction covers trade waste, wholesale markets, and shipboard gambling, but its integrity and licensing model could be transposed to other industries if City Hall, budget, and Council legislation allow.
This is for, thank you, this is for BIC.
So BIC was created to drive organized crime out of the commercial waste industry.
Recent reporting on towing describes armed turf wars between towing companies, including a Bronx body shop owner just sentenced to 19 years for killing a rival.
Does BIC see parallels to the industries it already regulates?
Has BIC considered expanding its jurisdictional authority over the towing industry?
And could its model of integrity vetting and licensing work for towing?
Thank you, Council Member.
As you noted, BIC's current jurisdiction covers the trade waste industry.
It also covers the wholesale markets, which are in your district, as well as shipboard gambling.
And that's our mandate by law.
BIC's team is a talented, highly skilled team that is adept with respect to
identifying patterns of organized crime and engaged in licensing for businesses where we have concerns about criminality and want to keep criminality out of those businesses.
That model could be transposed into...
to other industries.
If the city believes that there is a risk of criminality in particular industries and BIC should come in, we're ready to have those conversations.
There could be any number of industries that could be candidates for that, but that's a longer policy discussion that's going to have to include City Hall, that's going to involve some budgeting questions, and ultimately will require legislation by City Hall,
I'm sorry, legislation by City Council to give us the authority to move into whatever those new spaces are.
Thank you so much.