The Rev. Al Sharpton is coming under fire for appearing without a mask around the common areas in the luxury building in the Upper East Side of New York City, where he is renting an apartment valued at $2 million.
An unnamed fellow resident at the Bristol Plaza told The New York Post that Sharpton, 66, has been seen without a mask in common areas, including elevators and the gym at the building.
The Post notes that the activist and MSNBC host has also been posting maskless videos of his "morning thoughts," reportedly recorded in the building's gym, to his Instagram account.
The gym looks to be empty, but the rules of the building require residents to wear a mask or face covering when they leave their apartments, even if they do not go outside the building. Residents breaking the rules can face a $500 fine, which doubles if they continue to refuse wearing a mask, a Nov. 10 memo to residents says.
A person representing management at the building would not say if Sharpton had been fined.
Sharpton moved into the building last year. His apartment is owned by investor Ofter Shabtai, who bought it in June 2019 for $2.1 million, according to city records. He offered it for rent for $14,000 a month, real estate listings show.
Meanwhile, public records show Sharpton and his companies have more than $3 million in open tax warrants, including $760,309 owed in state corporate taxes by three of his business There is also $2.4 million shown in open federal tax liens for Sharpton and one business, but the exact amount that is owed is not clear. He has said he is paying down his debts.
Sharpton and his spokeswoman did not return the Post's request for comment but he has been wearing a mask in his latest Instagram videos.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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