On Wednesday, the backer of “defund the police” lost his car to kid thieves in broad daylight.
According to reports, Atlanta city councilman Antonio Brown, a backer of the “defund the police” movement, had his car stolen in broad daylight. The incident happened while Brown was in a ribbon-cutting ceremony in northeast Atlanta when four children took his car.
Atlanta councilman Antonio Brown, who voted to defund police, has car stolen https://t.co/ivfVfRFbp8 pic.twitter.com/oIdp1yX9tj
— New York Post (@nypost) May 27, 2021
According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Brown said that he didn’t immediately think that the kids would steal his car. The incident happened amid a recent wave of crimes in the city.
Brown campaigned for “reimagining public safety”
Brown recently joined the city’s mayoral race. According to the paper, he is promoting a campaign of “reimagining public safety.”
On top of this, Brown also voted for the ordinance to withhold a $73 million budget from the Atlanta Police Department. However, said the ordinance was closely voted down.
Meanwhile, according to Brown’s account, the “thieves” jumped into his car after he got out.
He then mentioned that he failed to realize that the car has been started. Brown was driving a keyless push-to-start Mercedes-Benz coupe. The councilman then described the kids who took his car as between the ages of 6 and 12.
According to a report by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Brown said that one of the kids acted as though he was carrying a gun.
Brown said that one of the kids was seated in the driver’s seat as they attempted to open the door to take him out of the car. The kid then fought back while three other kids were figuring out how to get in the car or stay out of the car. Then the kid began to hit on the gas. Brown said he tried to hold on to the car as he was dragged a few blocks down the road. However, the car started to go faster and faster, according to Brown.
The councilman said that as the kid started to speed up, he knew that he could have killed himself if he did not let go because they were going fast.
Brown: What happened is a “poverty issue.”
Meanwhile, Brown stated that he has no plans on filing charges against the kids, whom he said acted out of “desperation.”
Atlanta City Councilman Antonio Brown voted to #DefundThePolice last year only to have his Mercedes Benz stolen in broad daylight Wednesday by 4 kids while he was at a ribbon-cutting. https://t.co/SULnsyWkbX
— PARIS (@PARISDENNARD) May 27, 2021
The councilman then defended the theft by saying that what happened is a “poverty issue.” He said that at the time his car was stolen, it was 12:30 in the afternoon and the kids were not in school. He then questioned why there are no systems enforced to ensure that if the kids are not in school, they are at least in recreational centers.
Atlanta police are currently gathering information as to how the incident happened. They are also working on naming anyone who might have been involved in the incident and locating the stolen car.
