It’s not everyday that a Communications Bureau Operator for the Nassau County Police Department is involved in a highly contested gun shooting pursuit. But that’s what happened on an early Sunday morning in April around 3:30am, when CB Operator Keri Wilkinson was working 911 radio dispatch for the 4th and 5th precincts, and all the sudden found herself in the middle of directing police officers during a high speed chase of four armed suspects.
A man called 911 after his parents were tied up during a burglary at their Elmont home. Most police units in the area responded to the call, but before they even arrived at the home, they found themselves in pursuit of the vehicles. The armed suspects fired back at the police with several semi-automatic rifles. Eventually, after approximately 6 minutes, the pursuit ended in Queens, with all 4 suspects being arrested, with assistance from New York City police. In the end, no police personnel were injured and all victims in danger were free from harm due to the great work of all involved.
During the firing of rifles and high speed pursuit, Wilkinson was on the radio the whole time with the police officers, running license plates on the suspects’ vehicles, typing, and answering the officers’ requests accordingly. This was while she was 7 ½ months pregnant, with her daughter that is now over 4 months old. “I couldn’t have done it without all my co-workers who helped out that night,” she said. She worked closely with her supervisor Jan Kimbrough-Lewis, 2 other CB operators and coordinators.
Wilkinson, of Levittown has been with the Communications Bureau for 6 years, and was awarded by the department as their Operator of the Month. Operators work 3 tours per week, spending 2 nights working 911 radio dispatch, and 1 night taking 911 calls. But during high stress calls like this one, they work as a team in order to get the job done as efficiently and safely as possible.