114th Precinct Gets 14 New, 26 Reassigned Cops
BY RICHARD GENTILVISO

The 114th Police Precinct will have more than 200 police officers for the first time in a while, according to Deputy Inspector Brian McCarthy, commanding officer of the 114th, giving the precinct a total of 202 officers for the New Year.

“This is a real positive,” said McCarthy at the January meeting of the 114th Precinct Community Council at Riccardo’s. “Hopefully, they are going to stay with us and help us out in 2006.”

Although the 540 homicides recorded in the city for 2005 were the fewest since 1963, there have been three homicides in the 114th so far in 2006. “Why such an upswing in violence?,” a resident asked McCarthy.

Pointing to a double homicide on January 1 at 27th Avenue and 3rd Street, McCarthy said a shooter who killed one man was also shot dead as well. “A third person was arrested last Wednesday on murder charges,” he said.

McCarthy said what began as a fight outside a bar soon escalated into a fierce gun battle. Subsequent questioning of witnesses at the bar led police to the man accused of starting the fight, he said.

In another fatal incident on January 6, a Ridgewood man was stabbed to death about 2:30 a.m. outside an Astoria cafe on Steinway Street and 28th Avenue.

McCarthy said the 42-year-old victim was also involved in an argument with two men that resulted in his being stabbed to death. Police are searching for two men of Yugoslav descent. “We hope to get them,” he said. The cafe has been cooperating in the investigation, McCarthy said.

Although illegal guns continue to account for a majority of violent crime, McCarthy said knives were also frequently a weapon of choice. “Last year, we had 179 crimes [committed] with knives,” he said. “Nothing good can come from taking a knife out.” McCarthy gave notice he would not tolerate possession of any illegal knife, saying, “This is an offense we’re looking to enforce.”

Community Council President Ann Bruno introduced a group of rookie officers recently graduated from the Police Academy class of December 2005 assigned to the 114th at the start of the meeting. After a welcoming round of applause, they went out on patrol.

“It’s a really big bang to get in one shot,” McCarthy said about the combined increase of 40 officers at the 114th. Citywide, the New York Police Department swore in 1,121 new police officers from the 2005 academy class on January 9th.

Reviewing 2005, McCarthy said that 75 percent of crimes committed in the 114th were property related. Officers Joseph Chabus and Douglas George were honored as Cop of the Month for November and December, respectively, in recognition of their burglary arrests.

On November 28th, Chabus responded to a burglary in progress. At the scene, he coordinated an effort to surround the building, cutting off any escape and apprehend the suspect on a fire escape. After a second person was also arrested, Chabus conducted an interrogation that led police to a car that linked both suspects to five other Astoria burglaries.

“Officer Chabus does a good job every month, but this month he distinguished himself,” McCarthy said.

Back in October, Officer George, assigned to a plainclothes anti-crime unit, arrested two individuals with a total of 80 prior arrests for burglary on their records. George conducted a questioning of the two perpetrators that revealed their “fence”, or outlet for their stolen goods.

On December 8, Officer George executed a search warrant at a scrap metal operation on Northern Boulevard whose operator was charged with possession of stolen property.

Guest speaker George Frangoulis, a building consultant and the executive director of Queens County Architects, said a private tennis facility will soon be under construction at Van Dam Street and Skillman Avenue. The indoor tennis club will be a bubble on a roof, he said.