Candidate Calls Out Brooklyn Coronavirus Price Gouging

BROOKLYN, NEW YORK — A City Council candidate claims his gonzo, one-man investigation uncovered wholesaler-driven coronavirus price gouging in Bushwick and Brooklyn.

Rick Echevarria posted a video this week showing him confronting a manager at a Williamsburg warehouse which supplies 99 cents stores, THE CITY first reported.

The Brooklyn stores complained they either couldn't afford new prices on disinfectants or had to jack up prices to cover the costs, according to a release. In the video, the manager claims his suppliers raised prices on him and was passing that down to the stores.

"They're empty, they don't have no supplies because they can't afford the new prices," Echevarria told the manager.

Echevarria is running for the City Council's District 37 seat which covers Bushwick, Brownsville, East New York and bits of other north Brooklyn neighborhoods. The seat was recently vacated by Rafael Espinal and four candidates are up for an April 28 special election, Gothamist reported.

The special election won't include Echevarria, who instead is focused on a June 23 primary as an outsider, Gothamist reported.

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His campaign released the price gouging video this week, along with an announcement he filed a complaints against wholesalers Best Sale NYC, Inc. and Top Choice Brands, Inc.

Best Sale NYC jacked up the price of Lysol disinfectant by 42 percent in 10 days, while Top Choice increased the cost of Clorox disinfectant spray by 20 percent, a release states.

Echevarria also posted a video of Bushwick stores that agreed to not price gougeor bulk sell items in high demand during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams recently performed a similar high-profile stunt calling out coronavirus price gouging, this time at a Food Bazaar in Williamsburg. And New York Attorney General Letitia James recently accused an Astoria supermarket and a Manhattan store of price gouging.

Other candidates vying for the District 37 seat, as reported by Gothamist, are: Misba Abdin, the founder of Bangladeshi American Community Development & Youth Service; Kimberly Council, a former City Council candidate; Darma Diaz, a state committee member; and Sandy Nurse, a community activist and former State Assembly candidate.

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