Summertime heroics earned four cops top honors this week from the 76th Precinct Community Council.
For their hand in the arrest of a teen shooter, Officers Cristian Rodriguez and Kensington Cunningham were named “Cops of the Month” for July by the Council, which met Sept. 1. On July 4, a 20-year-old man hanging out on Hoyt Street near Douglass Street was shot after an 18-year-old allegedly approached him and opened fire, striking him in the stomach, according to Captain Kenneth Corey, the commanding officer of the 76th Precinct.
The cops were quickly on the scene, and arrested the alleged shooter in front of 476 Baltic Street, without incident, Corey said. The teen was charged with attempted murder and other charges, Corey said. His cops, the captain added, were singled out for their “keen observation and bravery.”
Also recognized were Officer John Keigans and Sgt. George Astras, named August’s “Cops of the Month” for apprehending three alleged cell phone thieves, Corey said. On Aug. 18, the cops responded to a woman riding the F train who said three men surrounded her and grabbed her iPhone.Near 380 Degraw Street, the cops saw three men matching the woman’s description, began their pursuit and noticed one of the men attempt to toss a cell phone down a manhole. The cops arrested all three suspects, and found a total of eight cell phones between them, Corey said. Their “tenacity” earned them the awards, along with sincere applause from the crowd, gathered inside the Union Street precinct house.
