Awards night at 109th Community Council

Awards for Police Officer of the Month and a number of special commendations to the cops involved in the investigation of the St. Mel’s Christmas Day robbery investigation were handed out at the 109th Precinct Community Council meeting on January 10th.
The crowded and lively meeting was presided over by the Precinct Community Council President Wanda Beck Antosh, a parishioner at St. Mel’s who added her voice to the congratulations.
The new Commanding Officer, Deputy Inspector Matthew A. Whelan addressed the meeting and reported that overall crime was down in the precinct for the year to date, although the violent crimes of murder and rape were up.
Whelan also outlined on a borough-wide program to combat auto thefts. He said that the precinct utilized ten cars for a three-day period, two from the 109th Precinct, four from other precincts and four from the borough. These cars were deployed to targeted areas resulting in a decrease in auto theft in those areas.
The Council and Whelan were pleased and proud of the swift resolution and arrest in the St. Mel’s Church Christmas Day robbery and Detective Christopher Austin, Sergeant Joseph Manfredi, Lieutenant Thomas Conforti, Officer Edward Lee and Detective Alfonso Capobianco were commended and awarded a plaque for their good police work. Police officers agreed that the quick thinking and good information supplied by an usher at St. Mel’s was also an important factor in solving the crime. Almost $6,000 in cash was recovered and the Precinct had it on good authority that the checks had been destroyed and could never be improperly cashed.
Whelan then took questions from the floor which included rumors about ATM numbers being able to trigger 9-1-1 calls; why citizens had seen large numbers of police at various locations; what was being done about homeless people allegedly buying alcohol for teenagers at a local 7-Eleven, to teenagers shaking down commuters in a “money for not breaking into your car” scam at the parking lot on 41st Avenue and Main Street in Flushing.
Evergreen Joe the leader of Scout Troop 253, requested help getting the $1,280 rent waived for his volunteer-run non-profit. In addition to an offer by Whelan to make some phone calls for the troop, an aide for Senator Frank Padavan offered the Senator’s help in finding the troop a rent-free space. Joe asked about the possibility of meeting in the old armory in Flushing.
The award for Police Officer of the Month of December 2006, sponsored by The Queens Courier was then given out to Police Officer Andrew Liakos and Sergeant Philip Roy.
On December 19, 2006, Liakos and Roy of the Precinct Burglary Apprehension Team were on patrol assessing burglary patterns when they responded to a radio call about a ringing doorbell.
This fit the pattern of burglaries and the description of the suspects matched the description of other burglaries and they began a search of the area. The officers observed two males who matched the description standing in a bus stop and approached them. The two men then fled, but Roy and Liakos pursued them, caught up to them and placed them under arrest.
Identification by the complainant confirmed the identity of the men. The burglary pattern under investigation consisted of eight burglaries and the investigation revealed that the two males arrested were burglary recidivists responsible for numerous crimes in the 109th Precinct.