A City Council member from Queens is urging her constituents to arm themselves following a terrifying home invasion in which robbers posing as Amazon drivers tied up a family and snatched thousands of dollars in cash, according to cops.
Republican Vickie Paladino offered to help residents in her district — which covers Whitestone, where the ordeal took place — obtain gun permits in light of the break-in Monday morning.
“I want to remind my constituents that New Yorkers have a constitutional right to protect themselves,” Paladino said in a statement.
“I urge my constituents to avail themselves of their rights under the Second Amendment; my office is always available to assist constituents with obtaining firearm permits for premises or concealed carry,” she said Tuesday.
The conservative pol’s call to arms came as the NYPD on Wednesday released surveillance footage of the pair of wanted perps wearing baseball caps, with one of them carrying an Amazon box and the other wearing a bright-yellow vest, walking on the quiet residential block.
The masked thieves pushed their way into the home at around 9 a.m., tying up the family living there, including three children, duct-taping their mouths — and then making off with the cash and jewelry, cops said.
“The NYPD has indicated that this was a targeted incident and there is no ongoing threat to the community,” Paladino said.
“Let me be absolutely clear – violence has no place in Whitestone or anywhere in our district.”
Neighbors said home invasions were not uncommon in the area — with at least two telling The Post they had recently been robbed.
A 37-year-old Whitestone resident who declined to give her name said money and jewelry were taken from her house six months ago, but luckily no one was home at the time.
“I don’t think it was random. I think people are scoping out the area,” she said.
“This neighborhood has been a little crazy. The same thing that happened to them happened to us.”
Another neighbor, a 25-year-old man, said his house had been broken into about six months ago as well.
“When that happened, we got prepared. You gotta protect yourself. All that matters is your life. The bad people, they never get caught,” he told the Post.
The 109th precinct, which encompasses Whitestone, has reported 99 robberies so far in 2025.
The NYPD is still searching for the suspects in the latest heist.
“The safety of our neighborhoods is my top priority – and I will not sit quietly while violence threatens our neighborhoods,” Paladino said.
