NYPD labels two-block stretch in Brooklyn a ‘police free zone’

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A notoriously violent two-block stretch of Brooklyn is fighting crime — by keeping uniformed cops away, The Post has learned.

NYPD officials agreed to turn a sliver of Brownsville in the NYPD’s 73rd Precinct into a “police free zone” last week as part of an city-funded experiment called the Brownsville Safety Alliance that initially was only twice a year but now runs four times annually.

And it’s an initiative that’s received praise from anti-cop, mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani, an official with the group that runs it told The Post.

“He believes in what we do,” said Dushoun Almond, program director of Brownsville in Violence Out, adding that the socialist Queens assemblyman even stopped by when a zone was in operation last April.

Cops can still be called for serious crimes such as stabbings or shootings, but members of his community group replace them for low-level offenses from noon to 6 p.m. on Mother Gaston Boulevard between Sutter and Pitkin avenues from Oct. 7 through Oct. 11, people involved with the program said.

Not everyone inside the NYPD was impressed.

“It has the potential to go sideways quickly,” a police source said. “This is the way that this new guy [Mamdani] wants us to go. [The brass] are trying to appeal to him. It’s insane.”

The Brownsville Safety Alliance — which was first started in 2020 under former mayor and avowed Marxist Bill de Blasio — includes about 20 members of a community group who walk the two blocks and handle low-level calls that come into 911 during the hours its in operation, police sources said.

A plainclothes “BSA sergeant” — a member of the NYPD — is assigned to shadow the community members in case more serious issues arise. Police officers are also stationed on the edges of the two blocks, the sources said.

A flyer that appeared on X that was posted in the neighborhood said cops were forbidden from entering the zone.

“No on duty [uniformed members of service] are to enter this area unless responding to an extreme police emergency (e.g. person shot, stabbed, etc. ),” the flyer states. “This event is being monitored at the Police Commissioner level.”

he flyer was first reported by retired cop John Macari’s podcast.

The NYPD shot down the flyer. “That was an unauthorized sign that was posted, and the signs have been removed,” a department spokesperson said. “Nothing has changed about our operations or deployment there.”

But Almond, of Brownsville In Violence Out, said the organization takes the lead on BSA and handles low-level 911 calls while uniformed cops stay away.

“They’re not gone, but they give us our room to control the block,” Almond said of the police.

“There’s a BSA every three months,” Almond said.

Examples of calls his group handles include “a disturbance in a store” or “a situation on the block where guys are drinking,” he said.

“We use our credibility,” said Almond, who goes by the nickname “Bigga” and grew up in the area. “We try to alleviate the situation. There’s really no push back because they don’t want any problems.”

During the BSA, groups also set up tables where locals can get help with healthcare, housing, addiction and other issues, he said.

This month’s BSA was uneventful, he said. They group didn’t handle any calls. “It was good, it was quiet. We had a gas main leak, that was it. That’s real good news.”

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