New 72nd Precinct XO to “bridge gap” with community

October 16, 2014 Heather Chin

Captain Thomas Ng with the 72nd Precinct’s new executive officer, Captain Eric Perez.

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NYPD Captain Eric Perez made his community debut at the October meeting of the 72^nd Precinct Community Council, greeting residents as the precinct’s newest addition and one of the people cops hope will help improve an increasingly strained community-police relationship.

Perez joins the 72^nd Precinct as its new executive officer and right-hand-man to commanding officer Captain Thomas Ng.

Ng is himself a relatively new addition who has faced scrutiny in recent months following the public release of cell phone videos showing controversial use of physical force by precinct officers against residents.

Perez’s appointment comes on the heels of a promise from NYPD brass to work together with the 72^ndPrecinct to address community concerns.

“[Perez is] very active and will be another way to bridge the gap” between police and resident communication, said Ng. “He will oversee enforcement and prevention of traffic, grand larcenies and burglaries. This is a team effort and the precinct is a team, not just the two of us.”

A Harlem native and 21-year NYPD veteran, Perez said he has three goals for his new role: “One, listening to the community; two, making sure officers know how important community members are to us; and three, ensuring we have a positive working relationship with the community in every interaction.”

Perez has been a captain for two and a half years and previously worked in Brooklyn Heights’ 84^thPrecinct, Clinton Hill and Fort Greene’s 88^th Precinct and Bed-Stuy’s 81^st Precinct.

One week into joining Brooklyn South and the 72^nd Precinct, he said “the transition is going great.

“I have family and friends here and it’s a great community,” he said. “Going forward, I see us continuing to improve that relationship.”

Two more additions were announced during the council meeting: P.O. Carmela Andersen’s move after five years from the precinct’s domestic violence unit to its community affairs unit, and P.O. Adriana Lobosco’s rise to help lead crime prevention efforts after two years on patrol.

Like Perez, both Andersen and Lobosco are fluent in Spanish.