NYPD: major crime down in 49th Precinct, but robberies, burglaries and pharmacy break-ins rise

At the June 17 meeting of the community board's Economic Development and Public Safety Committee, Lieutenant Mark Hanner of the NYPD 49th Precinct reported that "overall year to date, we're down in crime," while flagging rising robbery and burglary counts and an uptick in pharmacy burglaries across the command.

Hanner gave comparative counts and operational detail: in the recent 28-day period robberies were up (25 versus 20) and burglaries were up (19 versus 14). He told the committee the precinct has assigned a special operations team to address scooter robberies and said officers would conduct directed patrols to try to catch offenders in the act.

Members asked about grand larceny; Hanner said those counts fell (45 versus 60) after a major takedown of an organized crew. He also noted a traffic fatality year to date involving a Lime-style scooter that appeared to be the result of a fall or medical episode rather than a motor-vehicle collision.

During the public-comment period, resident Bernardet urged clearer parade-notice protocols, saying a parade application posted in late May for a June event reached community leaders too late and recommending 60 days' notice instead of the current 30 to ensure adequate community notification and coordination.

Committee members pressed Hanner on staffing: several speakers said growing housing development along White Plains Road and planned transit projects will increase demand on the precinct. Hanner acknowledged citywide staffing shortages and offered to arrange a meeting with the commanding officer to discuss metrics and advocacy; board members noted that budget increases to add officers must be sought from the City Council.

The meeting closed with a reminder about the precinct-council schedule and an adjournment at 7:38 p.m.