Crime Rates Rise In Bayside Amid Citywide Spike: NYPD

BAYSIDE, NY — The otherwise bucolic neighborhood of Bayside has not been able to duck the recent crime wave to come crashing down on New York City, NYPD data show.

Two Bayside precincts saw increases in major crimes as of Sept. 4 — in comparison to last year — as the city saw shootings drop but seven major crimes rise, according to an NYPD CompStat analysis.

NYPD from the 111th Precinct and the 109th Precinct that detail crime reported between Aug. 29 and Sept. 4 show Bayside has not escaped the wave.

In the 111th Precinct, robberies, felony assaults, burglaries, grand larcenies and grand larceny auto were all up in comparison to the same time period last year, data show.

Rape and murder were down compared to last year, but there was a 54.01 percent uptick in major crimes, according to the report.

The 109th Precinct saw an uptick in transit, housing, hate and sex crimes, along with misdemeanor assaults, petit larceny and shootings, data show.

Rape reports increased 60 percent to 24 from 15 assaults, robberies rose 92 percent to 188 from 98 complaints, felony assaults rose 65 percent to 221 from 134, according to the NYPD.

Grand larcenies had the largest major crime uptick in the 109th Precinct as it rose 119 percent to 1,002, up from 458 complaints the year before.

Major crime rose by 79.48 percent in the 109th precinct.

Among locals concerned about rising crime rates are members of the Bayside Hills Civic Association, who published an op-ed on the subject in their August newsletter.

"For the past few years, Bayside Hills has enjoyed relative safety and peace, where crime was something that one might hear about in the news," wrote George Tsourovakas. "Unfortunately that is not the case anymore."

Tsourovakas, co-owner of a civil defense firm, urged Bayside residents to keep their homes well-lit and to call police when they felt at risk.

He argued the crime spike was linked to the NYPD exodus that reportedly saw about 2,000 officers leave the force this year before receiving full pensions.

"Adding salt to the wound is that officers are leaving the NYPD at an alarming rate, impairing the ability of the police to protect the city’s residents," Tsourovakas wrote.

"So what are the residents of Bayside Hills to do with more crime and less cops?"