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Co-op City Public Safety finds missing 5-year-old child
By Bill Stuttig

With the help of a shareholder who alerted the Public Safety dispatcher of a small child wandering around a building late this past Sunday night, two responding Public Safety officers were able to find the missing child and quickly have him transported to an area hospital for needed care and follow-up attention.

Public Safety's Emergency Service Unit officers A. Mendoza and M. Bonilla, who were nearing the end of the Sunday evening 4 p.m. to midnight shift, responded quickly to the call from the shareholder who reported seeing a small male child wandering around aimlessly near Building lB at approximately 11:30 p.m Sunday evening.

The responding officers found the child at that location and said the child appeared to have special needs, was unable to communicate verbally and was in an unkempt condition, including no shoes, and appearing generally unclean with messy, dirty hair and teeth in a condition that indicated that the child had not received proper dental care for some time.

According to the report on the incident, the officers arranged for the unknown small child to be transported immediately by ambulance to the Jacobi Medical Center Pediatrics Unit for necessary care. The 45th Precinct was notified and also responded to the hospital for a follow-up investigation into how and why the child was out of his home and alone, especially at such a late hour and in a seemingly poor state of care. Because the child was not verbal, investigators had to dig to find out where the child lived and who was responsible for his care.

Public Safety investigators began researching similar incidents in the recent past and came upon a recent one emanating from a certain apartment. Officers were dispatched to the home and the parents located. They were brought to the hospital where their child was being cared for.

Representatives of New York City's Administration of Children's Services were also quickly notified of the child's condition and dispatched representatives to the hospital to determine the need for follow-up action to assure proper short-term and long-term care for the child. Upon hearing word of the incident, Co-op City's interim General Manager Noel Ellison said: "There are so many ways in which this situation could have ended sadly, if not tragically, had it not been for the vigilance of the shareholder who reported seeing the child, and the professional response of the individual officers involved. Appreciation should also be bestowed upon the many team members who train, assist and lead them in the proper performance of their duties. Many of our Public Safety Department's greatest successes come when our officers are motivated by their sense of humanity and compassion and the understanding that we are all part of the community we serve and are responsible for each other." Chief Frank Apollo, Commander of the Public Safety Department, added: "This was a phenomenal job done by ESU Officers Mendoza and Bonilla. I am so very proud of their alertness, professionalism and sensitivity to this event. The age of the child and the fact that he appeared to be special needs painted a potential recipe for disaster had these officers not taken swift action. The child is safe and getting the care needed today because of the quick actions of our officers. Also, a special thank you to the shareholder who saw the child out alone and quickly notified us. Those actions also very likely saved the child from further harm."

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