Gay sex sting in New York’s Penn Station results in almost 200 arrests

New York City councillors have criticised “discriminatory policing practices” after it emerged that there had been almost 200 arrests for cruising at a men’s toilets in Penn Station since June.

Figures show that in the first five months of the year there were just a handful of arrests for public lewdness in and around Penn Station in midtown Manhattan, a popular cruising spot, but since June close to 200 people had been detained by the transport police, Amtrak.

According to The City and The Gothamist, the arrests took place close to the train station entrance at Eighth Avenue and 31st Street, which is listed on gay hook-up app Sniffies.

A spokesperson for the NYC-based Legal Aid Society, which tracked the arrests, told The City that there had 20 arrests for public lewdness in just one day.

Sniffies users have reportedly tried to warn one another about the police sting, with one writing: “Undercover cops in bathroom” and someone else advising: “Stop playing in [Penn Station]. They have undercover cops hiding in the bathrooms arresting people. It’s not funny, it’s scary.”

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One man man said he was just relieving himself before boarding a train visit a friend in New Jersey. David, who is gay and was wearing a Pride wristband, felt he was being watched at the urinal and was subsequently approached by a man who told him he was under arrest for public lewdness.

He was handcuffed to a cell in Penn Station where he said he heard officers say: “Got three more f*g pervs.”

Although the charges were eventually dropped, David said: “I [had] never [been] arrested in my life, it was traumatising.”

One undercover officer, speaking to The Gothamist on condition of anonymity, said Amtrak police had been deployed to the station to catch people looking to hook-up, and a number of men with an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency “detainer“, which flags people who should be taken into custody for deportation, were arrested.

One Mexican man handed over to ICE had a US spouse, and was waiting to hear news of hisasylum claim. He was detained for a month before being released by a judge.

New York City sanctuary policies ban the New York Police Department (NYPD) and its officers from turning people over to ICE but because the Amtrak Police are federal officers they do not have to adhere to the regulations.

On Thursday (25 September) following the publication of the story about the arrests, New York City councillors Erik Bottcher and Tiffany Cabán, wrote to Amtrak president Roger Harris expressing “deep concern”.

The arrests “reveal deeply alarming violations of civil rights, due process and protections against discriminatory policing”, they said.

While similar stings undertaken by the NYPD had to be abandoned after a lawsuit revealed years of false arrests and targeting based on perceived sexuality, it was “alarming to see nearly identical practices being carried out by Amtrak police with even more severe consequences, including deportation”, they added.

The councillors urged Amtrak to “immediately cease these discriminatory policing practices” and produce a written account of how the arrests were carried out, how many people were detained and what safeguards would be put in place to “prevent further violations of civil rights”.

Beth Toll, a spokesperson for Amtrak, told The City that officers had “increased patrols at New York Penn Station to reinforce public safety”.

She went on to say: “Since implementing the heightened patrols, incidents have declined significantly. Amtrak remains committed to maintaining a safe and welcoming environment for all travellers and will continue to monitor conditions closely, making adjustments as needed to uphold the highest standards of security.”

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