Westchester Guardian Article/Mayor Clinton Young/City of Mount Vernon.

MAYOR'S CLOSE FRIEND,
AN ALLEGED PEDOPHILE
ACCUSSED OF RAPE AGAIN.

ACCUSSED OF RAPE AGAIN. THIS TIME AN INNOCENT 13 YEAR-OLD GIRL IDENTIFIED MAYOR'S FRIEND AS THE PERPETRATOR

On February 12, 2010, at approximately 3A.M., the Lantana, Florida, police received a kidnapping report about a 13 year-old female runaway. Earlier that night, she had been picked up by one Craig Jones, aide to notorious boxing promoter, Don King. Jones is a Mt. Vernon resident and long-time friend and supporter of Mayor Clinton Young.

The girl admitted running away, and advised police she had been at the Lantana Library using computers until 6:00 P.M. She then went to the coin laundry down the street and stayed there until 10:00 P.M. when Jones approached her in a black SUV. She got in and he drove her to Don King’s home in Manalapan, Florida. Jones was staying there to help re-launch the career of heavyweight boxing champ and convicted rapist, Mike Tyson.

The young girl told police Jones insisted on taking pictures of her which made her uncomfortable. After the photo shoot, Jones had sexual intercourse with the underage girl. As recorded in the police report, after Jones finished with her, he washed up, wiped her down with a towel, drove her back to the Lantana Middle School, gave her $50 and sent her on her way.

Jones denied having sex with the runaway, but admitted he picked her up and brought her to King’s house and later dropped her off.

Sources in Mt. Vernon political circles said Mayor Young knew of Jones’s 2003 sexual abuse conviction in Westchester and could not care less. In that case, Jones forced a 14 year-old Yonkers girl to have sex with him while he took pictures of her. Mayor Young reportedly said: “He paid his debt to society, now let him be.” The jury deadlocked on the sexual abuse charge, and rather than face re-trial, Jones copped a plea with Jeannine Pirro’s prosecutors to a misdemeanor charge of “endangering the welfare of a minor.” Jones was sentenced to three years probation and forced to undergo sex offender therapy, but violated that order in 2006 which added two months to his sentence.

Subsequently, Jones attracted much attention by operating an illegal bar and social club at 10 North 3rd Avenue in Mt. Vernon without licenses and permits. Ultimately, community pressure forced him to close down.

In recent months, Mayor Young has been subject to withering criticism from community activist, Samuel Rivers, for surrounding himself with shady characters such as Department of Public Works Commissioner, Terence Horton, once arrested for illegal weapons possession; Director of Civil Defense, Antoine Lowe, once arrested for soliciting an undercover prostitute; and Building Inspector, John Allyene, alleged to have DWI convictions and a prior arrest for illegal weapons possession.

A rape examination of the 13 year-old Florida victim was performed by William Rosenstein, M.D. He reported to Lantana Police the runaway was positive for sexual abuse and dried semen. A fresh tear of her hymen was still bleeding at the time of examination, and bleeding in the vaginal vault behind the hymen indicated very recent penetration. The runaway claimed she was a virgin prior to being raped by Jones.

Clinton Young was a county legislator for many years before he became Mayor of Mt Vernon, and has been in the public eye for years. It is simply inexcusable for a public official to associate with anyone convicted of sex crimes against children. If Jones is convicted of this horrific crime -- which bears striking resemblance to Jones’s 2003 case involving a similarly young victim – then Jones like will be sent away for a long time, and Mayor Young will have one less acolyte at his re-election fund raisers, and one less criminal at his side when he delivers his concession speech following the 2011 mayoral election.