NYPD shifting hundreds of non-patrol cops to streets to ‘combat violent crime’
The NYPD is pulling hundreds of officers from behind desks and putting them out on patrol starting this week to help “combat violent crime” as well as other qualify of life complaints, The Post has learned.
The department is set to roll out its new “enhanced deployment strategy” that is aimed at putting more uniformed cops in visible posts, according to a pair of memos from police brass obtained by The Post.
The move comes as shootings continue to surge, with the latest police data as of Sunday showing gun violence up 30 percent this year compared to last, and nearly 60 percent from 2020.
Overall, major crime is up almost 10 percent from pre-pandemic times, primarily driven by a spike in vehicle thefts, which, along with shootings, became a disturbing trend during COVID.
The plan calls for a total of 658 cops who are currently assigned to non-patrol posts to be moved onto the streets, according to the order from Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell sent out on Monday.
The two-part plan will see 300 uniformed officers from various assignments — such as the NYPD’s press shop, internal affairs and the terrorism unit — reassigned daily by Chief of Department Ken Corey to the 4 p.m. to 12 a.m. shift in “high visibility posts” based on crime trends, according to the memo.
Those units will operate in teams of eight cops and one sergeant, according to the document.
The other component will see each precinct and housing command pulling four uniformed officers from desk duties and moving them to patrol in the second and third tours, the memo says.
Each command is expected to have a deployment plan in place by Friday on who can be reassigned when the new units are expected to hit the street, according to a second memo from Corey sent out on Tuesday.
A police source said the plan to move cops out of administration and out on patrols has been in the works since last month.
It also appears to be part of Mayor Eric Adams’ plan to shift uniformed officers from non-police work to help combat crime and separate from revamped anti-crime teams.
