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Mayor Bloomberg says anyone who feels unfairly targeted by police because of race should file a complaint Thursday, Oct 24, 2013 * Updated 2:09 PM EDT
After two black customers have accused police of harassing them following expensive purchases at Barneys in Manhattan, Mayor Bloomberg said Thursday that anyone who feels treated unfairly should file a complaint.
Trayon Christian, 19, of Queens, said he was handcuffed and locked in a cell after buying a $350 Ferragamo belt last April. He says he was accosted by undercover NYPD officers after leaving the store, who questioned how he could afford such a pricey accessory.
He has filed a lawsuit against the city and Barneys, alleging he was held at a precinct in a cell for more than two hours before being released with no charges.
He told NBC 4 New York that questions were racing through his mind while he went through the painful experience.
'Why me? I guess because I'm a young black man, and you know, people do a credit card scam so they probably thought that I was one of them,' Christian said. 'They probably think that black people don't have money like that.'
In a statement, Barneys denied that it was involved in any detention, saying 'that after carefully reviewing the incident of last April, it is clear that no employee of Barneys New York was involved in the pursuit of any action with the individual other than the sale.'
Meanwhile, another shopper who heard about Christian's lawsuit came forward Wednesday to say she had a similar experience after purchasing a $2,500 Celine handbag at the store in February.
Kayla Phillips, 21, of Brooklyn, told the Daily News and the New York Post that she was surrounded by police after leaving the store. They demanded to know why she used a debit card without a name on it, she said.
Phillips explained that it was a temporary card, and after showing police identification and a new debit card that had arrived in the mail that morning, they let her go.
Bloomberg said the NYPD was reviewing its actions and declined to discuss the issue further, but added that 'we take every complaint seriously.'
A civil rights group said Thursday it was seeking a meeting with the CEO of Barneys.
The Brooklyn chapter of the Rev. Al Sharpton's National Action Network said the group also plans to picket Barneys if the alleged pattern of racial profiling does not stop, its president, Kirsten John Foy, said in a statement.
'Barneys New York has zero tolerance for any form of discrimination and we stand by our long history in support of all human rights,' the luxury retailer said in a statement.
Posted by Unknown on Thursday, October 24, 2013 - Rating: 4.5
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