Rocco Parascandola and Graham Rayman
New York Daily News
NEW YORK — The head of the union that represents NYPD sergeants is under investigation for comments he has made on social media, and some of his salary details are under scrutiny as well, sources said.
Ed Mullins, the longtime president of the Sergeants Benevolent Association, is facing a probe by the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau, a police official and a high level city source both confirmed. The probe is being conducted either by Group 1, which investigates captains and above, or the office of the Chief of Internal Affairs.
“He is a member of the Police Department. He is bound by the rules of the Patrol Guide,” the police official said. “There are certain things, even if you are a union official, that if you say them are out of line.”
The social media exchange that may have sparked the probe came when a shooter with a grudge wounded two cops in a 24-hour spree that ended with a shootout inside a Bronx precinct.
“This MUST be a city where everyone can live in peace and respect,” Mayor de Blasio tweeted Feb. 9 after the shooting.
Mullins, never shy about his views, responded, “Mayor DeBlasio, the members of the NYPD are declaring war on you! We do not respect you, DO NOT visit us in hospitals. You sold the NYPD to the vile creatures, the 1% who hate cops but vote for you. NYPD cops have been assassinated because of you. This isn’t over, Game on!”
Sources said the investigation is also examining Mullins’ NYPD pay. Among the issues are the night differential payments he received while still a member of the NYPD, but working full-time as union president.
Under the rules, if a cop scheduled on the midnight tour doesn’t actually work those hours, he is not supposed to get the night differential, sources said. Mullins could be forced to return the years of night differential he earned if the investigation finds it was improper, a source said.
Mullins declined to comment to the Daily News.
When de Blasio was in Nevada campaigning for Bernie Sanders Feb. 17, Mullins wrote, “Bill de Blasio is where he belongs—out of NYC!”
Mullins, via his SBA Twitter account, has been extremely vocal about his disdain for de Blasio and former Police Commissioner James O’Neill.
On Feb. 19, he posted a photo of a man sleeping on the subway after de Blasio tweeted about affordable apartments. “How much for the bench?” he wrote.
He’s also been a vocal critic of recent changes to bail laws that mandate release for people accused of non-violent crimes. While reform advocates say the changes make the bail system more equitable, detractors like Mullins blame it for a recent uptick in city crime — a correlation that de Blasio has blasted as inaccurate.
Mullins recently posted a video of two men boarding a train while riding motorcycles. “This is only the beginning of more to come,” he wrote.
In another post on a rape arrest, he wrote: “...The criminals on the streets of New York City feel empowered, why? Because they have been!”