Transit & Streets Active Updated Aug 28, 2026
The illegal e-moto deaths
Illegal high-speed e-mobility devices sold openly online, some built well past the state's 750-watt power cap, have killed three New Yorkers this year, most recently 17-year-old Gabriel Nacato near City Hall. Attorney General Letitia James is preparing a consumer alert against the devices after years without major enforcement. The fight is over whether the state moves beyond warnings to stop retailers and online marketplaces from selling them.
The story so far
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Aug 28, 2026 Latest
Facebook Marketplace, Temu, Alibaba and Craigslist were still shipping illegal e-motos to city addresses past Mamdani's Aug. 18 cease-and-desist deadline, with only about 15 of the 42 retailers, including Amazon and Walmart, having stopped, Streetsblog reported. City Hall said it is preparing further action against the rest.
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Aug 6, 2026
Mayor Mamdani sent cease-and-desist letters to 42 online retailers, including Amazon, Best Buy, Target and Walmart, demanding they stop selling e-bikes and e-motos that break the city's speed and weight caps by Aug. 18 or face fines of up to $2,000 per sale. The NYC E-Vehicle Safety Alliance called the move an impotent response for not targeting devices already on city streets.
Politics | Spectrum News NY1 
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Aug 5, 2026
City Council Speaker Julie Menin unveiled 17 bills to curb e-bike and e-scooter crashes, including a ban on sales of fast Class 3 e-bikes and a requirement that delivery apps get city licenses and share trip data, and set a Sept. 30 hearing with testimony from DOT, NYPD and DCWP. Mayor Mamdani said his focus remains on devices that are already illegal, stopping short of endorsing the wider package.
City & State New York - All Content Politics | Spectrum News NY1 -
Jul 31, 2026
Hours after Streetsblog reported that Gabriel Nacato's e-moto actually had a 1,500-watt motor, double the legal cap, manufacturer Deepower changed its website to describe the same model as a legal 250-watt, 20-mph e-bike, though other retailers including Walmart still listed it at its true wattage.
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Jul 30, 2026
A Chevy Tahoe struck and killed Gabriel Nacato, 17, riding an illegal 960-watt e-moto near City Hall, unhelmeted, the third death this year tied to illegal high-speed e-mobility devices after Terri Valenti and Dmytro Stechenko. Attorney General Letitia James said she will issue a consumer alert against the devices.
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