New York Home Depot hires security guards amid parking lot crime

A New York Home Depot has hired security guards and watchdogs to protect shoppers from harassment and raids by illegal immigrants.

Just north of the Bronx, outside New York’s borders, a Home Depot store employs two security guards in bulletproof vests, wearing MSA Security hats and carrying dogs in the parking lot, according to photos and reports from the New York Post.

Illegal border crossers try to make money by pushing people’s carts to their cars and putting items in the car, but some customers complain of aggressive behavior and robberies.

“It’s more about ubiquity. It’s not like we’re going to let them bite anyone or anything,” one guard told the New York Post, adding that he was hired for multiple reasons.

“It’s not just because of (illegal immigrants), but it’s also because of a lot of other things, like people breaking into cars and things like that,” he said.

The guarded compound in New Rochelle was quiet and there were no illegal immigrants in the area on Tuesday.

However, in Throggs Neck in the Bronx, at least thirty people were waiting outside the doors of a Home Depot.

Some were workers trying to find work with local contractors who could visit the store.

Others, however, aggressively tried to sell fake Airpods to customers or solicit tips by helping push carts and lifting items into cars.

Home Depot customers interviewed by the New York Post said some illegal immigrants even touched their belongings or insisted on pushing the cart even when turned away.

“And when they follow you to the car, it’s nerve-wracking,” said a female employee.

She said illegal immigrants robbed customers’ phones and wallets, with victims calling customer service to complain.

She has seen the number of scammers in the neighborhood increase, along with the number of illegal immigrants in New York.

After a harassment incident, a customer called Home Depot’s headquarters in Atlanta to complain, but it was a regional manager who told her they would also be bringing security guards with dogs to two Bronx stores.

An illegal immigrant told the New York Post that he charges $10 for pushing carts or lifting things, and that he makes $300 a day.

Home Depot spokeswoman Margaret Smith said the company prohibits loitering and solicitation in its stores and regularly cooperates with law enforcement. She would not say whether the Bronx stores will add security, including dogs.

“While we cannot go into detail about our security measures,” she said, “it is not unusual for us to utilize third-party security at various stores across the country.”

New York, the most populous city in the United States, has struggled with the arrival of more than 120,000 illegal immigrants in the past year.

A Sienna College poll released last year found that more than 80 percent of New York’s registered voters view the recent influx of illegal immigrants as a “serious problem.”

Meanwhile, about 51 percent of New Yorkers said they disapprove of Gov. Kathy Hochul’s efforts to address the influx.

Siena College pollster Steven Greenberg said it was the first time in any of the college’s polls that New Yorkers disapproved of President Joe Biden by a majority.

According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data, the Border Patrol encountered just 458,088 illegal immigrants attempting to cross the southwest border in fiscal 2020 during the Trump administration.
This increased under President Biden to 1.73 million in fiscal year 2021 and then to 2.38 million in fiscal year 2022. During the first six months of fiscal year 2023, 1.22 million meetings have already taken place.

Aldgra Fredly contributed to this report.

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