In the first year of the newly formed 3rd Precinct, major crimes rose 5.6 percent, according to year-to-year statistics from the Nassau County Police Department.
But Inspector Sean McCarthy, 3rd Precinct commanding officer, said he did not see any correlation to the rise in crime and the changes made to the precinct in June.
“I don’t think the increase is attributable to the consolidation,” McCarthy said. “It’s almost too early in the process to see what impact the consolidation will have on the crime numbers in general.”
He said there has been no difference in police coverage of the area since the 6th Precinct command was shuttered earlier this year in favor of a community policing center with reduced staff. He said 10 problem-oriented police officers were now active in the area, up from eight officers before the command consolidation occurred.
McCarthy added that grand larcenies, which constitute the bulk of major crimes in the 3rd Precinct command, are a consistent concern because of the “retail corridor” that already existed before the merger.
But, he acknowledged, the transition has presented “administrative challenges” for his command.
“The consolidation has been a lot of work and remains a lot of work, but it’s getting done,” McCarthy said. “Our communities are well served.”
Under the consolidation plan, the 6th Precinct in Great Neck was merged with the 3rd Precinct in Williston Park in June with the 6th Precinct’s offices downgraded to a community policing center. The 3rd and 6th precincts were among eight precincts consolidated under the plan, which Nassau County Executive Edward Mangano said was needed to cut costs.
The 3rd Precinct is now the largest of any precinct in Nassau County extending west to the Queens border, east to include Westbury and Roosevelt, south through Mineola and north through the Willistons.
Countywide, major crimes increased 4.3 percent, from 7,109 incidents from 6,818.
In the past year, the largest percentage increase in any category in the 3rd Precinct occurred in murder, with three incidents during the past year compared to one during the previous year. Those included the shooting of police officer Arthur Lopez during a traffic stop on the Cross Island Parkway, a shooting at a block party in Westbury and third death as the result of one inmate allegedly beating another inmate to death in the Nassau County jail. Countywide, the murder rate double year-to-year, with 12 murders compared to six in the prior year.
The second largest percentage increase in the 3rd Precinct occurred in grand larceny, which rose 17 percent in 2012 to 1,777 incidents, up from 1,005 incidents in 2012. Grand larceny includes fraud and identity theft, with every act of credit card theft categorized as a grand larceny.
“You’d have trouble reducing that by increased patrols,” McCarthy said.
Grand larcenies also include thefts of high-end valuables from cars, either left unlocked or with valuables left in plain sight.
“If there’s something of value in your car, if it’s just a sheet of glass between it and them, they’ll break the window,” McCarthy said.
Countywide, grand larceny rose more than 9 percent year-to-year, to 3,342 incidents, up from 3,061.
Pedestrian robberies in the 3rd Precinct increased 13 percent, to 113 incidents from 100 incidents for the comparable period in 2011. Commercial robberies rose 11 percent to 40 incidents from 30 incidents year-to-year throughout the precinct. Pedestrian robberies countywide rose 3.7 percent, to 503 incidents from 485 incidents, while the number of commercial burglaries remained virtually constant at 189 incidents in 2012 compared to 188 incidents during the prior year.
McCarthy said the “tremendous” number of retail outlets in the precinct’s jurisdiction accounts for the activity in that area. Pedestrian robberies were concentrated in the eastern part of the precinct.
Residential burglaries decreased by nearly 15 percent year-to-year, to 269 incidents from 369 incidents, with commercial burglaries also dropping by nearly 10 percent, to 166 incidents from 184 incidents.
McCarthy attributed that decrease to increased police vigilance. Through investigative work, 3rd Precinct police officers made what McCarthy called “significant arrests” in the Seacliff and Glen Head areas, catching individuals who had committed multiple burglaries in those areas. That included apprehending one individual who McCarthy said had committed eight burglaries.
“We did put additional patrols up there to get information and keep up pressure,” he said.
The aftermath of Hurricane Sandy produced what McCarthy described as a “small uptick” in commercial burglaries. He said the 3rd Precinct had stepped up patrols around jewelry stores, liquor stores, gun stores and high-end retail stores to address to the problem after the storm had left many locations shut down without power.
“We intensified our patrols around high-value targets,” McCarthy said. “We were able to work with the retail places and identify where the high risk places are located.”
Countywide, residential burglaries dropped slightly year-to-year from 1,367 to 1,336, while commercial burglaries remained relatively constant, with 559 in 2012 compared to 556 in 2011.
A drop of more than 9 percent occurred in stolen vehicles throughout the precinct, from 142 in 2011 to 129 in 2012. Thefts of cars and thefts from cars were mitigated by a strong presence at the Roosevelt Field Mall, both in mounted police and plain clothes officers on the ground, McCarthy said.
“We’ve always had a dedicated presence in the Roosevelt Field Mall and that mall detail really knows the mall,” he said.
Countywide, vehicle thefts dropped by 2.5 percent year-to-year, from 630 to 614.
The mall and college campuses are prime areas for vehicle thefts, which increased during the year in the 3rd Precinct north, formerly the 6th Precinct. McCarthy said his command is developing strategies to deal with vehicle theft in that area, as well as burglary and larceny issues.
“Nothing’s ever finished,” said McCarthy, who declined to discuss the strategies. “It’s a well-to-do area with a lot of high-value areas.”
In the category of felony assaults, the percentage dropped slightly year-to-year to 1.41 percent from 142 to 140 incidents.
