Bronx NYPD 43rd Pct Commander Sounds Just Like Bloomberg: Ignore the Stats, and Your Lying Eyes—Crime is Going Down!

 

Norman Lono for New York Daily News
Jose Rodriquez, 81, suffered a beating in September at the hands of a mugger who stole his gold chain.
 


[Previously, at WEJB/NSU:

“De-Policing in America’s Cities: Erasing the ‘Thin Blue Line’”; and

“‘Disappearing’ Urban Crime.”]

Crime spike in sprawling 43rd Precinct has Bronx communities seeking more police presence
Call for better communication between cops and citizens
Comments (4)
By Kerry Wills / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Sunday, January 15 2012, 6:00 a.m.

The 43rd Precinct racked up the largest increase in overall crime in the Bronx last year, but the NYPD statistics mean different things to different neighborhoods in the sprawling precinct.

Parkchester is still reeling from two shocking incidents in September, and some residents doubt police who say crime is down.

In Bronx River, where two murders occurred last week, some residents say they feel safe and appreciate an increased police presence.

Community leaders say one thing is certainly needed: Better communication between cops and citizens.

The problem in neighborhoods is the snitch syndrome, where no one talks about crimes committed if they see them, said Parkchester attorney Luis Sepulveda. Its not going to work unless the community gets more involved.

Sepulveda organized a well-attended November meeting of the Parkchester Public Safety Initiative. A second meeting is set for 6:30 p.m. on Thursday at St. Raymonds Auditorium.

The 43rd Precinct covers a large chunk of the Bronx — from the well-tended apartment towers in Parkchester to private houses in Castle Hill and several housing projects in Bronx River, Soundview, and Bruckner along the Bruckner Expressway.

Overall crime in the precinct is up by 2.2 %, from 2,273 complaints in 2010 to 2,324 in 2011, as of Dec. 25, the NYPD reports.

Murders rose from 14 in 2010 to 18 last year. Shooting incidents decreased 6.7%, from 45 in 2010 to 42 in 2011, but 3.8 % more people were shot, with 55 victims in 2011 and 53 in 2010, police said.

A review of NYPD reports shows at least seven of last years killings took place in Bronx River and Bruckner.

Many Parkchester residents believe street crimes are up in the area. On Sept. 17, a vehicle was carjacked on Unionport Road with a 2-year-old boy in the back seat. The thief got away with the car and the child was unharmed [sic]

On Sept. 25, 81-year-old Jose Rodriguez, was beaten and kicked in the lobby of his building and robbed of his gold chain.

These incidents and a rash of attacks on residents of Bangledeshi descent — that some believe were hate crimes — drew 350 people to the November meeting. Deputy Inspector Charles Ortiz, who commands the 43rd Precinct, told the gathering that crime in the area was actually declining and that there was just a perception of higher crime.

I dont know that its only a perception, said state Sen. Ruben Diaz. The stats are showing something different. Its becoming the OK Corral.

Joseph Ratti, a Parkchester resident who formed the Parkchester Parking Safety Committee, said Ortizs claim enraged many who attended the meeting.

We all wanted to walk out after that, said Ratti. We knew he was just covering up, like they all do. Why would you say that? You lose trust. You dont even want to talk to a person.

But Sepulveda defended Ortizs response, saying the commander was only referring Parkchester, not the whole precinct. Efforts to reach Ortiz for comment were unsuccessful.

Milagros Rodriguez, 54, has lived in Bruckner for 33 years said a few months ago, three gunshots whizzed past her sisters bedroom window while she slept in their Rosedale Ave. apartment building. In November, a man walked down a nearby street and fired a gunshot into the air, then, into a house.

The guy was walking up the block with a gun in his hand, Rodriguez said. By the time the cops got there, the guy had already walked away.

Tiffany Greene, 33, often sees youths smoking pot in the lobby of her building in the Justice Sonia Sotomayor Houses. She said she only sees cops when a crime actually happens.

In Bronx River, last Monday, Dawn Monaco, 47, was killed by her boyfriend at 1690 E. 174th St. On Jan. 7, Bienvenido Castillo, the superintendent of nearby 1770 E. 172nd St. fatally stabbed tenant, Gerald Caban.

Still, Laurie Browne, who was once a resident , said she has seen less crime. The cops are riding around here more often, said Browne, 41. Its good.

kwills@nydailynews.com

 

[N.S.: I counted no fewer than 17 punctuation errors in this article, and did not correct any of them. The Daily News may have let all of its copyeditors and proofreaders go, or perhaps, as part of its move to the left in recent years, it has dropped proper punctuation as elitist, as part of its drive for greater “inclusion.”

However, the daily has certainly kept its censors on, as there are only four comments to a story that would typically get scores of online responses.]

COMMENTS
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• WOODBURY02:10 PM

Jan 15, 2012
@ wingnut I totally agree with you. That's a black issue

• REALISTIC2201:37 PM

Jan 15, 2012
Wingnut. I guess your screen name says it all.

• FAH_Q01:35 PM

Jan 15, 2012
hmm i thought crime was DOWN?? nother bloomturd LIE!

• WINGNUT01:14 PM

Jan 15, 2012
Can't stop killing, robbing, and raping each other so now they want the PO-lice to intervene. And when they do, they're nothing but racist, abusive, overbearing pigs. Let them ethnically cleanse themselves, bulldoze the area, and make condos and a Disney NY