Mayor Gainey, police plan for large Light Up Night crowd

PITTSBURGH — A woman claiming on Facebook she overheard men talking about “ammo” they are bringing downtown this weekend is the latest threat of violence in Pittsburgh.

The post has been shared nearly 10,000 times, and Mayor Gainey is aware of it.

“Our law enforcement has it, everyone we know has it. We are looking out for it and investigating right now. I can’t comment further on that because it would be too early,” he told Channel 11.

The threat comes as crowds, performers and vendors are headed downtown for Light Up Night Festivities, and days after an innocent woman was shot in the middle of the day.

Mayor Gainey says his police force is ready. Officers are working 12-hour shifts, with help from the sheriff’s office and state police.

Plus, they have extra light fixtures for better visibility.

“Our law enforcement will be out there. We will be ready too, we are prepared to go. That’s one half of the equation. The other half is our community, our city and making sure we are looking after each other,” he added.

Matt Moody who works downtown tells us, he’s not worried.

“There is a lot of police down here usually. They’re pretty good about it, and I stay out of the alleys and weird places,” Moody said.

Mayor Gainey says if you see something that doesn’t seem right, call police or notify an officer downtown.

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