Cops of the Month in the 76th Precinct

Officers Sam Ouk and Carol Anchundia (not pictured) of the were honored last night at the Friends of Firefighters headquarters in Red Hook.

The two cops worked hard to catch and arrest a drug dealer in the Gowanus Houses, said Captain Jack Lewis. A search warrant was obtained, and $13,000 in cash was found, along with crack and marijuana, said Lewis.

But that wasn't enough for Ouk and Anchundia. On March 8, the cops were on patrol near Hamilton Avenue and Centre Street when they saw a car with a broken tail light. They pulled the car over, only to find 337 cartons of illegal cigarettes, a bounty worth more than $30,000 said Lewis.

Chief Joseph Fox, Commanding Officer of Brooklyn South, was on hand to congratulate the officers.

Fox also made the case for the importance of the NYPD Precinct Community Councils.

"New members, thank you, thank you, thank you," he said. "This is an important forum. When we think of government, there is a tendancy to feel we're not connected."

"At this meeting here, you get the president of the company," he added, looking at Lewis.

Lewis made note of the burglaries in Carroll Gardens, and said the precinct was looking for what he believes is one perpetrator. The burglaries are largely committed during the day, he said, and the thief enters through windows off of fire escapes.