L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva accused the board of pandering to “the mob” after they voted 4-0 to cut more than $145 million to local police forces from the next budget.

The move was approved amid growing calls for the defunding of police departments wake of Minneapolis man George Floyd’s killing.

L.A. County Sheriff’s Department was the hardest hit as the county voted to reduce their budget across all departments by more than $453 million.

“It’s just going to cause a lot of hurt to a lot of people,” Sheriff Villanueva told Fox L.A.

“We’re cutting into the bone of major activities that keep the community safe,” Villanueva added, listing examples such as the Special Victims Bureau, which investigates crimes such as rape, human trafficking and crimes against children and the Safe Streets Bureau, which is responsible for gang enforcement.

“Why would it all fall on law enforcement?” Villanueva said.

“Because they want to defund the Sheriff’s Department and they want to listen to the mob who is demanding defund the police.”

The L.A. County Board of Supervisors has been contacted for comment.

This is not the first time Villanueva has spoken out against the proposed cuts.

In a statement released before Monday’s vote, the sheriff said the cuts are targeted “specifically to hurt public safety” while other functions of government are protected.

“These cuts come at a time when jails were de-populated of over five thousand inmates in order to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Now that restrictions are lifting, violent crimes, such as murder, are on the rise across the County,” he said.

“Now is not the time to cut vital law enforcement services, that should be the last thing cut.”

Supervisor Janice Hahn abstained from the vote in favor of the cuts, arguing that it fails to help residents amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is a budget that is a status quo budget in an unprecedented time…I don’t think this budget meets the moment,” Hahn said.

“We are seeing more people losing their housing, their jobs, their businesses, their health at a scale that I haven’t seen before, and they need our help.

“We are voting on a budget that holds back our ability to be that helping hand.”

Supervisor Kathryn Barger denied that the cuts are putting the public at risk during Monday’s Board of Supervisors meeting.

“Safety and well being for communities are crucial. The budget today recommends vast cuts to the public safety department primarily due to AB-109 revenue,” Barger said.

AB-109 is money the county receives that relies on sales tax, which has dramatically fallen amid the COVID-19 outbreak and the forced closure of businesses.