A special police unit tasked with removing illegal mopeds, ghost cars and unlicensed street vendors from the streets of the Big Apple is shrouded in secrecy, a new report finds.
The Patrol Services Bureau’s Community Response Team (CRT), formed by top NYPD officials in 2022 to deal with quality-of-life complaints, has no mission statement and is not even mentioned on the department’s website, the city’s Investigations Division reports. Has gone.
The investigation found that the unit, led by Chief of Patrol John Chell and Deputy Commissioner of Operations Kaz Daughtry, had grown from an initial 16 members to 165 and was operating mysteriously throughout the city.
“The lack of transparency regarding the NYPD’s Community Response Team risks noncompliance, ethical violations, and negative policing outcomes,” DOI Inspector General Jeanine Barrett said Tuesday.
“Since its inception more than two years ago, the CRT has expanded significantly, with a team in every patrol area, without commensurate expansion of publicly available information about the work of this unit.
He said, “The recommendations in this report encourage the creation of public policies and procedures that will increase knowledge and confidence about the mission of the CRT, as well as facilitate future monitoring.”
Despite the surprising lack of transparency around the unit, the CRT is frequently praised by Daughtry on social media.
“Day 35: Manhattan residents have spoken loud and clear – illegal vendors cluttering our streets? Not on our watch!”. he wrote, showing several fake designer wallets seized by the unit on Monday.
“The issue of quality of life on Sixth Avenue is a regular topic at town hall meetings. But don’t worry – your community feedback team is working on it! Quality roads, quality goods, no more ‘designer’ deals that are too good to be true.”
Investigators also found that there was no operational guide or written procedure for recruiting officers into the special unit.
Additionally, the department was unable to provide investigators with 311 data, which police use to track and respond to community complaints.
The DOI said these findings are the first part of an ongoing investigation into the unit.
In the next step they will check discipline among its members.
An NYPD spokesperson said the department would investigate the report.
“We thank DOI for its review of the policies and procedures related to the Community Response Team,” the spokesperson said.
“We look forward to reviewing the report and carefully considering its recommendations.”
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