By Gary Buiso
Just over a year on the police force, and Officer Francisco Tejada has already made a name for himself. This week, his name is now inscribed on a wooden plaque that reads “Cop of the Year.” Tejada’s hard work was recognized at the recent meeting of the 84th Precinct Community Council, held at St. Francis College in Brooklyn Heights. Among his 34 arrests this year, Tejada helped gather information that led to eight guns being taken off the street, along with a large cache of cocaine and other drugs, according to Leslie Lewis, the commanding officer of the 84th Precinct. When Tejada was named “Cop of the Month” in October, Deputy Inspector Philip Sferrazza, the commanding officer at the time, said Tejada was making some “nice arrests” in the DUMBO/Vinegar Hill area, where he was a beat cop. Based on some of the intelligence Tejada was able to gather, cops were able to secure a search warrant for 192 Sands Street, at the Farragut housing development, Sferrazza said, where the guns were discovered. The end result of the operation was the arrest of a man and a woman, and the recovery of the guns, including a sawed-off rifle and shotgun, an imitation pistol, a bullet proof vest, crack cocaine and marijuana, and $427 in cash, Sferrazza said at the time. For his efforts, Tejada received the plaque and warm applause from the crowd that braved the cold night. “He’ll be ‘Cop of the Month’ again,” Lewis predicted.
