Under New York City’s stiff gun control laws, it can be famously hard to obtain a carry permit from the NYPD’s license division — at least, famously hard if you’re an ordinary resident without cash or connections to spare. Now, scandal [DNAInfo, New York Daily News]:
A Brooklyn businessman has been charged by the feds with obtaining gun permits for friends and other businessmen by paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes to NYPD officers in its License Division, authorities said on Monday….
In all, Lichtenstein boasted that he obtained 150 weapons for his friends and associates, charging them about $18,000 each time, and giving $6,000 of the payout to his police connections. If true, that means corrupt officers raked in as much as $900,000.
It’s yet another reminder, Ira Stoll points out, of the general rule that draconian regulation begets corruption — and a caution to those who propose to inflict NYC-style regulation on other parts of the country.
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To add to the fun, NYC also requires permits for long guns, which means that you can’t even get a single-shot 12 gauge for home defense without getting enmeshed in the permitting system.
No word on any police being arrested for taking the bribes?
Anyone care to take the bet that the police union won’t be standing shoulder to shoulder with the corrupt officers?
In a city where there is a problem at the South Ferry terminal with con artists selling expensive tickets to gullible tourists for rides on the FREE Staten Island ferries, is it possible the fixer is sandbagging the gullible rich who pay him thousands for the permits, and pocketing the alleged bribes?
Unlikely, it’s almost impossible for anyone to get a permit in NYC without political connections.