Councilman Vacca Honors 45th Precinct Officers

Police officers of the 45th Precinct were honored for their extra efforts in a December robbery of a young teenager.

A 14-year-old male was robbed at 3602 E. Tremont Avenue on December 15 by five perpetrators who attempted to take his jacket and cell phone. One of the gang members pulled out a gun and hit the teenager in the face, causing a large laceration. Immediately after the robbery, the boy was able to wave down a patrol car.

Ten officers, who were dressed in undercover street clothes, tracked down and arrest all five of the teens on foot within five blocks of the scene of the robbery.

One of the robbers was later identified as the perpetrator in another robbery that had taken place back in October near the Westchester Square train station.

Councilman Jimmy Vacca personally presented the individual awards to the officers who made the arrests.

“Our streets are continuing to become safer with the work of the officers at the 45th Precinct,” Vacca said. “Their hard work shows the residents of the community that they have a love for being law enforcers and are doing whatever it takes to keep the streets clean and safe from crime.”

Although the precinct did not release the names of the victim or the perpetrators, they are very proud of the dedication and hard work that they are receiving from their officers. Captain Russell Green, who was recently put in charge of the precinct in the summer of 2010, reassured residents present at the meeting that his officers will continue their excellent work.

“We want our residents to feel safe and secure at all times, knowing that whenever a crime occurs our officers will be on top of it,” Green said. “We are very proud of these ten officers and how quick they were able to handle this robbery on one of the busiest streets in our community.”

Only six of the officers who handled the robbery were present the night of the meeting. Nevertheless, Councilman Vacca did not hesitate to present the officers at the meeting with certificates, thanking them for their dedicated work. As a result of Vacca’s in the council, the 45th Precinct, along with the 49th Precinct, will each be receiving 10 new officers by the beginning of February.

“It’s always a good thing when we can add more police officers to a precinct,” Vacca said. “Although Captain Green and the officers we have already are doing a terrific job, the fact that our precincts are getting more officers will ultimately benefit the safety of our communities.”