I am appalled by this afternoons incident of shots being fired at Elm & Appleton Streets, that put the safety of Holyoke’s innocent children at risk. First and foremost, I want to make it clear that this was a random act of violence and thankfully, the bus and its passengers were not the target of this heinous act, but let me be clear: this kind of criminal behavior cannot be tolerated in the City of Holyoke. My administration is fully committed to working with the Police Department and providing them with all the resources they need to apprehend the individuals who committed this crime. I call on any individuals who might know more about the crime to please contact the Holyoke Police Department at either 536-6431 or the text the word “SOLVE” to our anonymous tip line to 274637 on your cell phone. We know that in cases like this, people are hesitant to come forward and bare witness to this crime, but I ask anyone who may know anything to imagine their children being on this bus, and the fear that they would feel not knowing if their children were safe. The residents of this neighborhood do not stand for this, I do not stand for this, and Holyoke will not stand for this. We need full cooperation from the community in order to bring these violent offenders to justice. Moving forward, my office will continue to support the Police Chief’s aggressive effort to remove illegal guns from our streets and the department’s community policing efforts in order to protect the people of the City of Holyoke from harm. At a time when Holyoke is moving forward, we will have setbacks and challenges. However, I know that Holyokers will overcome, and I know we will refuse to let a certain few taint the abundance of good in our City.
Posted on: Thu, 16 Jan 2014 00:02:56 +0000