Mamdani Appoints Ex-Con Who Robbed Cab Drivers at Gunpoint to Crime Policy Team

Mysonne Linen, a former rapper imprisoned for violent armed robberies who has also met with Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, will advise NYC mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani on criminal justice

Credit: Libs of TikTok on X

Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has appointed Mysonne Linen, to his transition team’s criminal justice committee, placing a man convicted of two felony armed robberies in the 1990s in an advisory role on policing and crime policy. The appointment was announced November 26 via social media by the advocacy group Until Freedom, where Linen serves in a leadership position.

Criminal Past and Prison Time

Linen’s legal troubles began when he was building a career as a rapper with Def Jam Records. A Bronx jury convicted him in 1999 for his role in two violent robberies. In the first incident from June 1997, Linen and accomplices attacked cabbie Joseph Exiri, beating him with a beer bottle during the robbery. The following March, the group held Francisco Monsanto at gunpoint, taking his cash and jewelry. Both drivers identified Linen in court testimony.

Rebranding Through Associations with Radical Activists

After his release, Linen repositioned himself in the criminal justice space from a different angle. He established Rising Kings, teaching programs for Rikers Island inmates, and co-founded Until Freedom with anti-Israel activist Linda Sarsour, Tamika Mallory, and Angelo Pinto.

Credit: Claire_V0ltaire on X

Mallory gained national prominence as a co-chair of the 2017 Women’s March but was forced to resign in 2019 amid a mounting antisemitism scandal. She repeatedly refused to condemn Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan despite his well-documented antisemitic statements, including calling Jews “termites,” blaming them for the slave trade, and stating, “I’m not an anti-Semite. I’m anti-Termite.”

During a 2019 appearance on “The View,” Mallory refused to use the word “condemn” when pressed about Farrakhan’s hatred of Jews, stating only “I don’t agree with these statements” while defending her relationship with him. She famously posted a photo calling Farrakhan “the GOAT” (greatest of all time) on Instagram. Mallory is also a prominent advocate for defunding the police.

Linen himself has been photographed posing with the Nation of Islam leader, images that have circulated on social media. In an interview from 2015, Linen discussed how he worked closely with Farrakhan in organizing the “Million Man March” event, in which both of them spoke at. Linen has also made personal statements such as, “America is still white supremacist based, the theories of white supremacy is still the foundation of America.” Additionally, Linen has made X posts that appear to suggest that Jews “uphold white supremacy.”

Mysonne Linen (left), alongside Nation of Islam leader Louis Fouis Farrakhan (right). Credit: Jews Fight Back on X

X posts from Linen suggesting that Jews “benefit from or uphold white supremacy.” Credit: Mysonne on X

Pushback From Law Enforcement

Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association president Benny Boscio told the New York Post that placing convicted felons in position to shape criminal justice policy is “deeply disturbing,” while those who enforce the law daily “have been shut out from this process entirely.”

Recently retired NYPD Chief John Chell said the appointment fits Mamdani’s pattern of selecting anti-police advisers, warning the approach “point[s] to a potential erosion of public safety in New York City.”