NYC Mayor Adams rips Giuliani over alleged assault captured on video: 'Falsely reporting a crime is a crime'
Rudy Giuliani said he was assaulted during a campaign stop for his New York GOP gubernatorial candidate son
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}New York City Democratic Mayor Eric Adams suggested Rudy Giuliani exaggerated an alleged assault incident at a State Island supermarket, stating Tuesday that "falsely reporting a crime is a crime."
"I looked at the video, and someone needs to remind former Mayor Giuliani that falsely reporting a crime is a crime," Adams remarked to reporters on Tuesday, the same day Giuliani’s son, Andrew Giuliani, faced off against other GOP candidates in the gubernatorial race during the primary election.
Rudy Giuliani, 78, was at a ShopRite on Sunday afternoon with his son while he was campaigning.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A man reportedly called out "What’s up, scumbag?" before delivering a blow to the elder Giuliani’s back.
RUDY GIULIANI'S ALLEGED ATTACKER HAS CHARGES DOWNGRADED, IS RELEASED ON HIS OWN RECOGNIZANCE
Surveillance video of the encounter obtained by the New York Post shows the suspect walking up behind Giuliani and slapping him on the back once with an open hand.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Giuliani described it as a "very, very heavy shot" in a Facebook video on Monday.
Andrew Giuliani, right, a Republican candidate for Governor of New York, is joined by his father, former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani, during a news conference, June 7, 2022, in New York. ( (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File))
But the defense team for the suspect, identified as 39-year-old grocery store worker Daniel Gill, said it was nothing more than a pat. Adams described the incident in a similar fashion.
"When you look at the video, the guy basically walked by and patted him on the back," Adams said Tuesday, according to The Guardian. "It was clear that he was not punched in the head. It was clear that it didn’t feel like a bullet. It was clear that he wasn’t about to fall to the ground."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The current mayor asserted that "the district attorney has the wrong person he is investigating."
Mayor Eric Adams attends joined introduction of new public school superintendents with Schools Chancellor David Banks at Tweed Courthouse. ((Photo by Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images))
"What if we didn't have the video? This person would have been accused of a serious crime," Adams said.
Gill’s charges were reduced Monday, and he was released on his own recognizance.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Originally charged with second-degree assault, he now instead faces third-degree assault, third-degree menacing and second-degree harassment charges.
Garden City, N.Y.: Republican Party nominee for New York State Governor, Lee Zeldin, speaks at the party's convention in Garden City, New York, on March 1, 2022. ((Photo by Reece T. Williams/Newsday RM via Getty Photos))
"Given Mr. Giuliani’s obsession with seeing his name in the press and his demonstrated propensity to distort the truth, we are happy to correct the record on exactly what occurred over the weekend on Staten Island," Legal Aid Society, which is representing Gill, said in a statement, according to FOX 5 NY.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Ultimately, Andrew Giuliani was defeated Tuesday by the other GOP frontrunner, Rep. Lee Zeldin, who received the Republican Party’s nomination.
Fox News’ Paul Best contributed to this report.