Bloomfield Police honor their own in annual ceremony

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BLOOMFIELD, NJ — The Bloomfield Police Department held its second awards ceremony in the Council Chambers on Thursday, May 5.

The awards were of two types: for valor, and for excellent police duty. Altogether, 26 awards were given out to 22 officers, four distinguished themselves by winning in both categories. The awards were for actions taken in 2015.

The master of ceremonies was Lt. George Ricci. With each presentation, Ricci noted the action taken by the officer meriting the award.

Police Director Sam DeMaio said the event was one of the nicest for him because it not only was meant to show appreciation to the officers but also to their families and the many children who were present.

DeMaio thanked his officers for making the transformation that the department has undergone since he became police director in late 2014. He spoke to his officers about police work.

“It’s not just a job, it’s a calling,” he said. “Everything you do impacts people’s lives. That can’t be said about most jobs. Never forget that.”
Mayor Michael Venezia also spoke, saying the news media does not come out for good news. “I’ll stick by you guys, whatever,” he said. “Keep up the good work.”

Ricci read off what each officer did to receive the award. The medals for valor were awarded first.

• Ricci said Officer Thomas Lutz was on burglary detail at a gas station when he executed a motor stop. This was in April 2015. He smelled marijuana in the car and conducted a search. A revolver was found in the glove compartment.

• Officer Dominick Sodano administered Narcan to a woman who had overdosed on heroin and saved her life. The woman was transported to Mountainside Hospital.

• In June 2015, Officer Salvatore Cordi came to the aid of a construction worker who had fallen. He shocked the man three times with a defibrillator and save the man’s life.

• Sgt. Nicholas Polidoro and officers Anthony Litterio and Matthew Popowicz made a vehicle stop. They saw marijuana and conducted a search and recovered a .45-caliber revolver, cocked, with hollow-point bullets in the chamber.
In August 2015, Sgt. Luca Piscitelli and Officer Donald Grey made a motor-vehicle stop on Franklin Street and JFK Parkway. They observed that the driver was nervous. Gray noticed the butt of a revolver and a struggle ensued between the officers and the suspect.
“They recovered a .38 special and got a DUI off the street,” Ricci said.

• Officer Gemner Rosales noticed the tail light of a car was out. He tried to make a vehicle stop but the driver ran away and was apprehended. A 9 mm gun was found.

• For excellence in police duty, Ricci said Piscitelli and Lutz noticed a double-parked car. They thought a drug deal was being conducted and investigated. They found drugs, a loaded Luger revolver and a loaded Beretta revolver.

• Lt. Anthony Argento came upon a bloodied individual at Wright’s Field and determined that he was a suspect in a crime.

• Grey and Officer Reuben Rivera made a stop, on Bloomfield and Belmont avenues, of a car with tinted windows. They found drugs and a .25-caliber handgun in the car.

• Officers Timothy Kealy and George Bambera did a traffic stop. They smelled marijuana and conducted a search. They found prescription drugs and a revolver.

• Officer Nader Sarabamoun was dispatched to a possible armed robbery. He saw the female suspect. She tried to escape but was apprehended.

• Officer Jonathan Donker was dispatched to Bloomfield College. He was told a person was removing items from a building. He located the suspect and made the arrest.

• Officers Meljun Pascua and Nicolae Toader recovered a .38 special from a car.

• Officer Ana Ruiz was dispatched to a robbery and gave a description of the suspects to Officer Leonard Antinozzi who apprehended them.

• Also receiving medals for excellent police duty were Lt. Gary Peters and Sgt. Joseph Corio for the apprehension of two burglary suspects.

• The officers who were awarded both medals, for valor and police excellence, were Piscitelli, Lutz, Cordi and Grey.
The final award to be given out was the Director’s Award. DeMaio told the audience that the awards were being given out in recognition of National Police Week. Peace Officers Memorial Day was first proclaimed in 1962 by President John Kennedy. This day is May 15. Police week is the week in which that date falls.

“The Director’s Award is for someone who goes above and beyond,” he said. “We veered away from a single person and decided to give it to an entire unit.”

The award was then presented to the anti-crime unit. This unit is comprised of Polidoro, Lutz, Popowicz and Litterio and Officer Anthony Batelli.

The invocation was delivered by the Rev. Vernon Miller of the New Light Baptist Church. The benediction was from Bishop Charles Harris of Bethel Church of Love and Praise.