Over the past decade, Astoria and Long Island City have mirrored the decrease in crime of greater NYC. The most recent annual stats (from 2003) reveal an overall decrease in crime for the 114th Precinct of 65.3%, over a 10 year period. The types of crimes that showed the largest decreases include Grand Larceny Auto (77%), Burglary (72%), and Murder (69%). According to stats released by the NYPD last month, the crime rate is even lower for 2004 (Click Here to see the latest Crime Stats PDF). It is impressive to note that these decreases in crime have coincided with an increase in Astoria's population.

Statistics paint an interesting overall picture, but to understand fully some of the factors behind the lower crime rate, MyAstoria.com approached the 114th Precinct for their perspective. Crime Prevention Police Officer, Robert Beuche, was more than happy to talk with us.

The 114th Precinct covers most of the LIC area, including all of Astoria, Old Astoria, most of Long Island City, Queensbridge, Ditmars, Ravenswood, Steinway, Garden Bay, and Woodside. The precinct is responsible for patrolling and handling disputes all the way from LaGuardia Airport to the Queensboro Bridge. It is the most densely populated section of Queens.

"Astoria is far safer than 15 years ago," Beuche said, "There is a different atmosphere now and more respect for the law . . . The community have really gotten involved." Beuche, who has worked for the NYPD for 20 years, and has been at the 114th Precinct for more than 15 years, attributes much of the new atmosphere to Proactive Policing - a practice which targets smaller offenses in the hopes of preventing larger ones - and to Deputy Inspector David Barrere, Commanding Officer of the 114th Precinct.

Barrere holds neighborhood meetings every 4th Tuesday of the month. The meetings are held at Riccardo's, at 7:30PM, and will resume in September. Anyone in the community can attend these meetings, speak with the Commanding Officer, express their concerns, and have their issues discussed. "He's a very hands-on and community-orientated officer," said Beuche of Barrere, "He really connects with the public, and he follows up on every issue he hears about."

Proactive policing is based on the fact that many of the perpetrators of serious offenses are often wanted for less serious violations. "By cracking down on quality of life complaints or going after smaller crimes," explained Beuche, "we can get them on something small, run their name, and discover they're wanted for something bigger. It has had a huge citywide impact."

Recent budget cuts from the mayor's office have directly affected the workload of New York's Finest. "We are understaffed, right now", said Bueche. "The public perception of us is that we are sitting around drinking coffee and not answering the phone and taking 2 hours to get out to a call, but this is simply not true. If 20 jobs come in one evening, we have to prioritize the nature of the call. If there is an injury involved, we will tend to it immediately, but if it's an incident that has already happened, it doesn't and can't take priority over a situation that is currently in progress. We just try to explain [to the public] that there are not enough cops, and we are running from one job to the next, going in order. We have SP10 cars that are designated to go to the past jobs."

According to Officer Beuche, the most common complaints in the area are Quality of Life related issues: Noise, loud music from neighbor's apartments, and motorcycles at Astoria Park, to name a few. "It's a good idea to call the 311 number and place the complaint through them," said Beuche, "It'll be forwarded to the correct precinct, the Commanding Officer will get a print out, and an officer will follow up."

Over the past 2 years, the biggest problem on the rise is Identity Theft (Grand Larceny). "It's definitely a problem we'd like to see go down and fast," said Beuche, "It's a nation wide epidemic." Officer Beuche recommends that everyone should have a locked mailbox. "You have offenders who wander around checking to see if they can get to your mail. They take credit card applications out of the box, and apply for them in your name have them sent to another address, and before you even know what happened your credit is ruined, and you owe thousands of dollars." Beuche added, "Not many people are aware that there is a number you can call to permanently get off the credit bureaus list for unsolicited credit offers. Just call 1-888-5-OPTOUT."

Officer Bueche goes out and talks to a lot of senior groups and warns them about scams that are happening in the area. "It's very important to speak to the elderly in our community about these crimes. They're usually not violent crimes. [Scam artists] will come posing as the water or electric company, or even as a father and son, to gain entry to your home. One will distract you in one room, and the other will move about your home and rob you . . . A lot of the victims live alone and are very lonely and are just happy that someone is there to talk to. It's very sad; they take advantage of these people." Another popular attack, Beuche explained, involves a team of 5 or 6 people who will focus on an elderly person coming out of a bank. "One will bump into you, the other will grab your purse, then hand it off to another and another, and within a minute, all your money is gone and so are they. You won't know what hit you."

Staying Safe in Astoria

The 114th Precinct Releases a Monthly Neighborhood Bulletin, offering safety tips to prevent various types of crime, ranging from Burglary to Identity Theft. A number of previous bulletins are available in PDF format below.

Some of the many insightful crime prevention techniques mentioned include:

Crime Prevention Bulletins from the 114th Precinct:

Crime Prevention Programs

2004 - Identity Theft

January 2004

April 2004

June 2004

August 2004

• Always travel with someone, a friend or relative. Regardless of the nature of the crime, a criminal tends to be much less likely to approach two or more people, as it usually complicates the situation.
• Keep your mailbox locked. Report suspicious looking people loitering around mailboxes.
• Always have window guards on windows where there is a fire escape.
• Place a strong piece of wood between the top of the window and the pane. Such a technique would make a break-in very noisy and is a strong deterrent.
• Never hail a cab off the street. Always call a car from a reputable Car Service company. There have been incidents in the past involving rapists posing as cab drivers.

Please see the attached bulletins for more effective crime prevention tips and techniques.

MyAstoria.com would like to thank Officer Robert Beuche for his time, insight, and contribution to this article.