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NYPD uses BULLDOZERS to demolish 70 motorcycles in crackdown on riders who take to the streets on 'illegal' bikes

The public pulverizing spotlighted a New York Police Department crackdown on renegade riders
They are often young, unlicensed drivers who zoom and spin through some neighborhoods on bikes that aren't street-legal
The NYPD usually gets about 2 cents a pound from a salvage yard for the wrecked bikes

Published: 22:24 GMT, 17 May 2016 | Updated: 21:57 GMT, 19 May 2016

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The NYPD bulldozed around 70 motorcycles in a show of force against thrill-seekers who take dirt bikes and ATVs onto New York's city streets.

The public demolition spotlighted a crackdown on renegade riders - often young and unlicensed - who zoom and spin through some neighborhoods on bikes that are not street-legal.

'We want to send out a very strong message to the nitwits and knuckleheads who insist on operating these vehicles on the streets,' said Police Commissioner William Bratton said Tuesday.

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A driver rides a bulldozer atop 70 confiscated motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles on Tuesday

Bulldozers drive over the bikes during Tuesday's event in Brooklyn's Red Hook neighborhood

A pile of 70 confiscated motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles are on display after the New York Police Department crushed some of the 700 confiscated vehicles at the Erie Basin tow pound

He added: 'They are creating extraordinary dangers for not only themselves, but for the public.'

The confiscated bikes leaned on their sides, like a shelf full of half-fallen books, on the Brooklyn waterfront as two bulldozers rumbled into place on either end of the line.

With the wave of a checkered flag, Bratton sent the bulldozers crawling back and forth over the bikes, flattening them with a thrum of metallic clatters and creaks.

So far this year, more than 679 bikes have been confiscated — 95 percent more than by this time last year — and dozens of drivers have been arrested on such charges as reckless endangerment.

Nearly 80 percent of the confiscated vehicles go unclaimed, Chief of Patrol Carlos Gomez said.

So far this year, more than 679 bikes have been confiscated — 95 percent more than by this time last year

New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton waves a checked flag to signal the start of the crushing

Bratton, left center, and others inspect a pile of 70 confiscated motorcycles and all-terrain vehicles before the NYPD crushed them with bulldozers

The riders' maneuvers have spurred complaints from residents of some city neighborhoods. But policing the bikers hasn't been without controversy: One rider, 28-year-old Eddie Fernandez, was killed in 2012 when a police cruiser rammed his bike during a chase. Police no longer pursue speeding bikers on the streets, relying instead on surveillance by helicopters and various other tactics, Gomez said.

Police said their crackdown isn't targeting licensed, law-abiding riders.

'It's directed at what we have called 'motorized wilding,' where they just take over the streets, endanger the public and project a sense of lawlessness,' Gomez said.

The NYPD usually gets about 2 cents a pound from a salvage yard for the wrecked bikes. An auction wouldn't be worth it, and there's no telling whether the bikes could be outfitted for legal riding, police said.

A row of destroyed vehicles lies on the ground. The NYPD usually gets about 2 cents a pound from a salvage yard for the wrecked bikes

'We want to send out a very strong message to the nitwits and knuckleheads who insist on operating these vehicles on the streets,' Police Commissioner William Bratton said Tuesday