Approximately 12,000 residents of East Flatbushwill soon find themselves on the 67th Precinct’s email list.
The effort, starting in the new year, will enable the precinct to keep in contact with those who live and work in the community, particularly with respect to problems that may occur locally, said Captain Jeffrey Schiff, the precinct’s executive officer.
Schiff revealed the details of the new initiative during the December meeting of Community Board 17, which was held in the gymnasium at St. Therese of Lisieux, Troy Avenue and Avenue D.
Schiff said that the precinct plans to notify local residents and businesspeople about a wide range of matters, but especially plans to let them know about suspects that the police are seeking.
“The idea is, if a crime happens in the Bronx, do you really care? Not really, because it doesn’t touch you. But, if I tell you what’s specifically happening in this community, you are going to have more of an interest,” he explained.
In addition, where once the cops used to hand out printed copies of wanted posters — reaching only limited numbers of people — those can now be emailed to everyone in the neighborhood whose email addresses the precinct has. The precinct has been collecting email addresses since August, Schiff said.
“We are trying to reach as many people as possible,” he emphasized. “With 12,000 emails, someone has probably seen one of these perpetrators.”
In addition, Schiff said, the precinct will ask area residents if they have any knowledge of malfeasance on the part of known felons, gang members and people who have been arrested for gun possession who are on a list of individuals that the precinct is keeping close tabs on.
“If you have any information about a perpetrator and illegal activity, you can shoot us an email,” he went on.
As for those who will be getting the emails, initially it will be individuals who have registered complaints with the precinct, but, said Schiff, anyone can get on the list, simply by asking.
“The reason we are down in crime is not just the good work of the 67th Precinct,” Schiff concluded. “It’s outreach from the community. We want to bring crime down even further if possible.”
