Cops flee NYPD in biggest exodus since 9/11

According to data obtained by The Post, the NYPD saw 3,701 officers retire or resign in 2022, the most since the post-9/11 exodus in 2002, when 3,846 officers said goodbye to the job.

Pension fund numbers show that 2022 exits are 32% more than the 2,811 who left in 2021.

The mass migration came as the NYPD hired 1,982 officers in 2022, leaving the department down about 1,700 cops, the records suggest.

Parole reform, resentment over the city’s vaccination mandate, the depolice movement, cops feeling disrespected, and the lure of higher pay and lower stress proved to be the final push out the door for many cops.

“The city is bleeding blue, and I think the blue line is going to get thinner,” said Joseph Giacalone, a retired NYPD sergeant and adjunct professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. “At this rate, continued public safety weighs in the balance. I would worry more about resignations than pensions. Cops are walking away for better pay, benefits and working conditions.”

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is vocal about his support for law enforcement agencies, launched the Law Enforcement Recruiting Bonus Payment Program, which offers officers from other states up to $5,000 in sign-on bonuses. Former NYPD cop Alexandre Tilan left the department in April for a law enforcement job in Florida.

Alexandre Tilan, 29, had been with the NYPD for six years when he left the force in April, despite not being anywhere near the 22-year threshold for a half-pay retirement pension. He joined the St. Petersburg Police Department in Florida a month later.

“Since I’ve been here there’s been more respect,” said Tilan, now a member of the Suncoast Police Benevolent Association. “When I come to work, people say, ‘You’re always smiling.’

“I was on the highest salary with the NYPD, which I think is about $89,000. Right now … in Florida, I’m making $72,000,” Tilan said. “However, the weekly [take home is] higher due to lack of state and city tax. When I get to the top salary here, it will be over $100,000.”

Spero Georgedakis, 52, a former Miami SWAT team officer and owner of Good Greek Moving & Storage, works with the Florida PBA to help law enforcement officers relocate to the state.

Tilan, who was assigned to the 72nd Precinct in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, noted that “the Florida facilities are better, the area is nicer, you don’t have ceiling tiles falling on you … It feels like you’re more supported and having the tools to succeed.”

Tilan said in New York that there is “professional frustration” when you make an arrest and the suspect is out “before the papers are dry.”

The growing exodus of the NYPD began after the police-involved killing of George Floyd in Minnesota on May 25, 2020. The outrage sparked calls from Democrats to defund the police along with nationwide protests, and a number of NYPD officers were collateral damage.

“Since I’ve been here there’s been more respect,” said Tilan, now a member of the Suncoast Police Benevolent Association. “When I come to work, people say, ‘You’re always smiling.’

The marked members are taking other civil service tests and going to police departments on Long Island and out of state, or joining the higher paying Port Authority Police Department.

“Since I’ve been here there’s been more respect,” said Tilan, now a member of the Suncoast Police Benevolent Association. “When I come to work, people say, ‘You’re always smiling.’

The current PAPD academy class has 138 recruits, with 60 being former NYPD officers, said Robert Egbert, a PAPBA spokesman.

Spero Georgedakis, 52, a former Miami SWAT team officer and owner of Good Greek Moving & Storage, works with the Florida PBA to help law enforcement officers relocate to the state.

It’s even running ads to lure troops to greener, sunnier pastures.

“What is happening is heartbreaking [to the job in NYC],” said Georgedakis, who grew up in Queens wanting to be an NYPD officer. “I still have friends and family in New York. they [the cops] they are literally shackled and disrespected. It’s almost like cutting off your nose to mutilate your face. You need the police. You need law and order.”

NYC PBA President Patrick Lynch said, “Mayor Adams has said he wants to improve police officer morale and increase the number of NYPD officers. The time to do so is now. The mass exodus is already significantly affecting NYPD operations. If it continues any longer, it will completely wipe out the public safety gains we’ve made over the past year.”