Illegal aliens near violent NYC shelter apparently form massive, illicit open-air market: 'Getting out of hand'

In recent weeks, illegal aliens have set up a makeshift encampment outside the Randalls Island shelter, where they are apparently operating an illicit open-air market, selling drugs, loose cigarettes, and food.

According to the New York Post, the once lush park has now been taken over by an illegal tent city that is littered with trash, blankets, and clothing. The encampment, situated along the East River on Randalls Island, has more than 50 tents. The city has stationed two portable toilets in the area, but the Post reported that they were "filthy and overflowing, and don't appear to have been serviced for at least a week."

'It's a calamity.'

Some of the illegal aliens residing in the park have managed to crack into the city's utility poles to steal electricity for cooking or take over water fountains for bathing.

The news outlet reported that more than two dozen tents line the park's pathway, and numerous electric scooters zip by at high speeds through the bicycle paths.

One Manhattan resident told the Post that illegal immigrants are chasing and threatening local residents out of the area.

"This is my zen place. Well, it was my zen place," the resident stated. "There was never any trash here, and it's filled with trash here."

"It's a calamity place now," she added.

A New York Police Department officer stationed in the area told the Post that the open-air market and encampment situation is "getting out of hand."

WABC-TV reported Wednesday that NYPD officers came through the area to perform a sweep and dismantle the encampment. Law enforcement reportedly confiscated unregistered motor vehicles. The Post noted that a similar encampment sprouted up last year that police had to clear out repeatedly.

NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell stated, "We don't care about your status, we're here to fight crime — whoever you may be, wherever you hang out, wherever you live."

According to the Post, many of the illegal aliens residing in the makeshift unlawful encampment were previously housed at the nearby Randalls Island shelter, which has become a hub for violence since it opened last year.

A number of rowdy and even deadly altercations have broken out at the shelter. Just last month, a shooting near the shelter resulted in one death and two injuries. Earlier this year, a 24-year-old male who lived at the Randalls Island shelter was stabbed and killed by a group of men also residing at the shelter.

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