The former head of the New York Police Department’s Internal Investigations Bureau was back in action Wednesday, arresting at gunpoint two pill-carrying teenagers who had been trespassing in his yard, according to police officials and witnesses.
Joseph Resnick, 72, a former deputy police commissioner who ran the IAB until his firing in 2022, detained the 15- and 17-year-olds in the yard of his home on 89th Street in Bellerose, Queens, after they jumped his fence, a source told The Washington Post.
When officers arrived on the scene just after 8 p.m., they found the children in possession of as many as 10 oxycodone pills, sources said.
Neighbours said the children were part of a group of five young people who had been walking along the road shortly before the incident.
Two of the children were wearing ski masks on their faces, leading residents to suspect the group was up to something sinister.
“I saw it and said something was wrong,” said the neighbor, who declined to give his name.
“They were walking down the street talking,” he said. “I couldn’t see them anymore. Then I saw a bike go by, then I saw lights and a police officer.”
Residents said the group of teens had been hiding in another neighbor’s backyard, and when officers passed by, three of the children ran down the road and two jumped over Resnick’s fence.
“He has cameras everywhere,” the neighbor said of the former chief.
“He went outside with a gun and they stayed there,” the resident said. “One of the kids … said he was coming from Queens Village and was across the block when someone pointed a knife at him and he ran.”
Police arrested the three children on the east side of the Resnick home and found the retired police chief and two other people.
“It’s scary,” said neighbour Ashan Ali. “I’ve never seen anything like this. … It’s incredible.”
“That’s the lieutenant’s house,” he said, pointing to Mr. Resnick. “He doesn’t play.”
