DUMBO

More officers requested for Brooklyn Bridge Park after shooting

April 22, 2015 By Rob Abruzzese Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Officer Lauren Jones (center) was presented with the Cop of the Month award by Leslie Lewis (left), 84th Precinct Community Council president, and 84th Precinct Capt. Sergio Centa (right) during Tuesday’s monthly Community Council meeting. Eagle photo by Rob Abruzzese
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Brooklyn Bridge Park suffered a well-publicized violent incident on April 15 when two shots were fired on Pier 2, and as a result, the 84th Precinct has made a request for more cops to help patrol the popular park during the summer months.

“To address the conditions of Pier 2, I will have two officers there every day from about 2 or 3 p.m. in the afternoon until the evening,” 84th Precinct Capt. Sergio Centa said at this month’s Community Council meeting in Boerum Hill Tuesday night. “Hopefully that will provide a presence for the people using Pier 2.”

Centa added that like last year, there will be additional officers assigned to the park during events such as concerts or movie nights.

Akeem Reed, 17, and Legrant Foster, 20, were arrested following the April 15 shooting. Centa said his officers responded to the call and were able to apprehend them based off of descriptions by first responders. He said the officers noticed the pair as they passed a bag back and forth before they ditched it. The perp who is believed to be the shooter was arrested on felony weapons charges.

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From May 1 until the end of September, there were 23 major index crimes in the park and 19 of those cases included grand larceny, Centa said. Ten of those cases involved unattended property theft of valuables over $1,000, and the rest involved Citi Bikes being stolen, he added.

“This is the first real threat of violence that we’ve had at the park,” said Centa. “I did make a request for more officers for more months of the summer. I’m confident that the request will be approved.”

 

CRIME REPORT

Crime is still up in the 84th Precinct, about 10.5 percent for the year, but it is down almost 9 percent over the last 28 days. That represents approximately 30 more incidents of crime compared to a year ago, with the majority of those crimes attributed to grand larceny. Robberies are down 10 percent for the year, felony assaults down 20 percent and burglaries down 3.6 percent, Centa said.

Over the last 28 days, grand larceny has gone down, Centa said, almost 9 percent. He said his crime prevention officers have been out and warning people of how they can avoid being a victim of grand larceny to keep that momentum going.

“We see people leaving wallets on counters when they go shopping, [forgetting] to take their wallet after they paid [or] they leave it in baby strollers,” Centa said. “I hate to sound like a broken record, but I see the same type of crimes over and over again — all preventable stuff.”

One recent problem has been the theft of older minivans, like Dodge Caravans and Plymouth Voyagers, from around 1998 through 2000. Centa said those vans are easier to target than newer cars, and added that they are often then used to steal motorcycles and scooters.

 

COP OF THE MONTH

Officer Lauren Jones was named Cop of the Month for her help in tracking down a stolen wallet. Community Council President Leslie Lewis called it some of the best police work he’s seen in his roughly 25 years working with the precinct.

According to Centa, the incident began when a wallet containing credit cards was stolen from a locker at the Atlantic Avenue YMCA. Jones called the credit card company and found that one of the cards had been recently used at a Subway restaurant across the street. Jones went to the Subway, reviewed their video surveillance and took that evidence back to the YMCA where she was able to get an ID of the three perps involved.

Once Jones was able to get the IDs of the perps, she proceeded to arrest each individual at his or her respective home.

“A lot of times we take a report and there isn’t much we can do with it,” Centa said. “Officer Jones was able to take the extra steps and did an excellent job tracking down this person’s belongings.

“She didn’t get a gun off the streets or save somebody’s life, but grand larceny is a major problem within the precinct, and it’s important to the people who become victims.”

 


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