Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
NYPD: Murders Down 33% In 2013, Thanks To Social Media Snooping
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Feb 24, 2013
Modified Feb 24, 2013
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Christopher Robbins
Published Feb 24, 2013
Modified Feb 24, 2013
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly says that the city's murder rate keeps dipping, and is already down by 33% in the first two months of 2013, and credits the decrease in part to his department's increased focus on social media to catch gang members. "My idea, the Crew Cut concept, focuses on this directly," Kelly told the Post in an interview, referring to Operation Crew Cut, which used the Facebook activity of alleged gang members to string together charges of organized crime. New units called Strategy Enforcement Teams work with officers focused on narcotics and gangs to track criminal activity. "In each initiative, [Strategy Enforcement Teams] help us monitor social media and we gather information we can use on these groups."
Operation Crew Cut yielded 49 arrests of alleged local gang members in East New York, and conspiracy charges were used to arrest them, much like with a mafia case. “If you have a victim who is assaulted, they won’t talk to police,” a police source tells the Post. “But when gang members threaten each other on Facebook, that’s enough to get a conspiracy charge.”
One of Kelly's deputies who is most adept at the practice, Deputy Inspector Joseph Gulotta, the commander of Brooklyn's 73rd Precinct, combs Facebook and social media for "hours each week" and confiscated more guns last year (199) than any other precinct in the city. After an article praising Gulotta's work was published in the Daily News, he was threatened on Facebook, and a 19-year-old surrendered shortly after.
It's worth noting that when we asked Kelly about the department's posture towards monitoring social media last summer, he responded, "[The NYPD] only monitors social media for specific investigations. That's the world we live in."
In the interview, Kelly also praises the department's new domestic violence units for helping to curb violent crime. “Domestic violence is a key component to addressing violence and addressing murder," he says. Buried in the last paragraph, we're also assured that "Kelly also credited stop-and-frisk," among other initiatives for a drop in crime, despite the drop in the practice (and the murder rate) last year.
Tagged
73rd precinct
cops
murder
murder rate
nypd
police
Ray Kelly
snooping
social media
stop and frisk
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
2 pedestrians killed in Bronx crash after driver ran red light, police say
The NYPD said the investigation is continuing and no one had been arrested Saturday.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
and
Ann Givens
Published Oct 10, 2026 at 1:24 p.m. ET
Rain could put a damper on NYC’s long weekend. Here’s when it will clear.
Remnants of Hurricane Isaias could bring more than an inch of rain, gusty winds and even a thunderstorm Sunday before conditions improve Monday.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
News
Rain could put a damper on NYC’s long weekend. Here’s when it will clear.
Remnants of Hurricane Isaias could bring more than an inch of rain, gusty winds and even a thunderstorm Sunday before conditions improve Monday.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Holy civics! NYC schools' own comic books in the spotlight at Comic Con
By
Jessica Gould
What we know about the ICE shooting in NYC
By
Karen Yi
DSA to Mamdani: Fire NYPD commissioner if ICE doesn't leave NYC
By
Elizabeth Kim
,
Brigid Bergin
and
Ben Feuerherd
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .