NYPD: Violence for last period in June down

The July 4 weekend may have been a fun time if you were watching fireworks or at a barbecue, but for the New York Police Department and those unlucky enough to be in vicinity of any shootings it certainly was not. With that said, shootings in the city during the five-day weekend are down about 50 percent compared to previous years, said acting Police Commissioner Edward Caban.

During the quarterly crime briefing at One Police Plaza on July 6, Caban gave crime figures for the second quarter. The Independence Day period, which consists of July 1 to the morning of July 5, had 49 shootings in 2020, 43 in 2022, but just 23 this year.

“We know any single shooting is unacceptable, we know that. But the reality is the work of your NYPD officers is making a real difference and we are not letting up now or ever,” said Caban, who following Keechant Sewell’s resignation in June is acting police commissioner until a permanent replacement is named.

For the month of June major crime is down nearly 4 percent, with five of the seven major crime categories lower than they were last year. Caban has credited the decline with the NYPD’s crime reduction strategies.

Fighting gun violence has been a top priority for the department, said Caban, saying there are far too many illegal guns on the streets. Shootings have decreased citywide the past 13 weeks, according to Caban.

Murders in New York City have also continued to decline over the first half of 2023, though in Riverdale murders are currently up compared to last year. Stats from NYPD show there were two murders within the 50th Precinct for this period in 2022, while there have been three so far in 2023. There was also recently a fatal stabbing of a homeless man on Friday, June 30. Though the perpetrator was charged with manslaughter, it is still considered a murder, according to DCPI.

In that incident, officers of the 50th Precinct responded to a 911 call at about 12:15 a.m. reporting there was an assault in progress at West 236 Street and Broadway. When police arrived they found the victim 52-year-old Richard Roberts with several stab wounds in the torso. The Kingsbridge man was transported to New York-Presbyterian Allen Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Another homeless man, Hardy Renell, 58, was arrested and charged with manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon later that evening.

There was also a recent arrest in the fatal shooting of 27-year-old Jeremy Valencia on May 17.

On June 28, police arrested and charged Brooklyn resident Arsenio Lopez with murder, manslaughter and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon.

Despite the increase in murders, the 50th Precinct has been doing “pretty good” in terms of violence for the last period, according to Capt. Filastine Srour, the precinct’s commanding officer. During Community Board 8’s June meeting, Srour said the precinct is down 7 percent in robberies, 30 percent in felony assaults, 18 percent in burglaries and 16 percent in grand larceny.

Grand larceny auto and car-related thefts still remain as one of the 50th Precinct’s largest problems, which is unsurprising considering grand larcenies make up 40 percent of the crime in New York City. Robbers will steal things like car doors, airbags and catalytic converters.

“We had a nice streak for a while where I was deploying officers to a certain zone and extending their hours and able to give them overtime,” Srour said. “It seemed to work and stabilize and it seemed to really make an impact but unfortunately we’ve seen a large increase in the grand larcenies.”

In particular Srour has noticed an increase around the Marble Hill area, specifically houses. According to Srour, it is not stolen cars that are responsible for this uptrend but rather stolen motorbikes and e-bikes that are considered autos. She has given a theory that a person or group of people living in Marble Hill have started working together to steal things close to them. The detective squad is looking at each case as a whole pattern.

She has tried to get surveillance footage.

Despite the decrease in shootings, there was talk of perception versus numbers. Caban spoke of visiting Zamaiya, the 5-year-old girl who was shot in the Bronx, in the hospital. As a father and someone who grew up in the Bronx, he says he understands people’s concerns about what they’re doing. But he said there also needs to be a dialogue regarding how everyone contributes to the perception and asked reporters how they would “tell this story.”

One reporter brought up how Bronx residents don’t feel the perception and numbers match because more young people are involved. Chief Jeffrey Maddrey said it’s important to the NYPD to make sure Bronx residents feel better and safer about their neighborhoods. He spoke of strategies they have with the youth, recently having 1,000 young people sign up for their Youth Employment Program and another 1,700 in the youth police academy.