{"id":52772,"date":"2025-11-26T11:13:09","date_gmt":"2025-11-26T11:13:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/52772\/"},"modified":"2025-11-26T11:13:09","modified_gmt":"2025-11-26T11:13:09","slug":"staten-island-detective-retires-as-nypds-most-senior-officer-after-four-decades-of-service","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/52772\/","title":{"rendered":"Staten Island detective retires as NYPD\u2019s most senior officer after four decades of service"},"content":{"rendered":"

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 After more than 40 years with the New York City Police Department, Detective Thomas Cerbone is hanging up his badge and leaving behind a legacy that included Times Square patrols, presidential motorcades, and community service.<\/p>\n

Cerbone retires as the most senior officer among the NYPD\u2019s 36,000 members, a distinction confirmed by a department-wide list released just days before his final tour.<\/p>\n

Cerbone, inspired by his father \u2014 an NYPD officer and detective he describes as his hero \u2014 joined the force in 1984. His first assignment was with NSU 3, covering Midtown North and South. <\/p>\n

\"DetectiveA young Detective Thomas Cerbone surrounded by family looks up at a bronze statue of a police officer.Advance\/SILive.com | Shaina McLawrence<\/p>\n

Cerbone spent 11 years patrolling Times Square before achieving his long-time goal of joining the elite Highway Patrol in 1995. After completing wheel school, he was assigned to Highway 2 and later transferred to Staten Island\u2019s Highway 5 unit in 2000.<\/p>\n

Over the next three decades, Cerbone became a fixture in Highway Patrol, handling everything from traffic enforcement to high-profile security details. He earned the rank of detective in 2013, detective second grade in 2017, and detective first grade in 2023.<\/p>\n

Cerbone estimates he participated in as many as 60 presidential motorcades and escorted \u201cbasically almost every world leader\u201d who visited New York City \u2014 along with three popes. <\/p>\n

\u201cOur job was to get them from point A to point B with no trouble,\u201d he said proudly.<\/p>\n

\"DetectiveDetective Thomas Cerbone retires from NYPD Highway Unit #5, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Advance\/SILive.com | Jan Somma-Hammel)STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE<\/p>\n

Reflecting on his 42-year career, Cerbone referenced Frank Sinatra\u2019s \u2018My Way.\u2019 While he admits to \u201ca few regrets,\u201d they are \u201ctoo few to mention.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cerbone\u2019s service was not without obstacles. A cancer diagnosis threatened to derail his plans, but he refused to let it stop him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI couldn\u2019t let bumps in the road, no matter how great they were, prevent me from getting to my final destination, which was to stay on this job as long as I could,\u2019’ Cerbone said.<\/p>\n

He credits doctors at Memorial Sloan Kettering for his recovery and says he feels blessed to be \u201cone of the lucky ones.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"DetectiveDetective Thomas Cerbone of NYPD’s Highway Patrol #5 poses with children from the Seton Foundation during his last day on the job on Nov. 25, 2025.Dennis Quirk<\/p>\n

Beyond the badge, Cerbone has spent 12 years co-leading the Seton Foundation for Learning<\/a>\u2019s annual holiday toy drive<\/a> alongside Highway 5 Commanding Officer Lt. Joseph Bell \u2014 a tradition he vows to continue as a civilian. <\/p>\n

The event has become a Staten Island spectacle, featuring 12 NYPD motorcycle \u201creindeer,\u201d a police escort and Santa Claus arriving in a van filled with toys. Officers personally purchase gifts for children, sometimes going above and beyond, like buying pajamas for a child in need.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the highlight of the year,\u201d said Seton Foundation representative Dennis Quirk. \u201cHe\u2019s devoted himself to these kids and took them on as if they were his own.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cerbone is mentoring another Highway Patrol officer to take over his official role, ensuring the tradition continues.<\/p>\n

\"DetectiveDetective Thomas Cerbone retires from NYPD Highway Unit #5, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Advance\/SILive.com | Jan Somma-Hammel)STATEN ISLAND ADVANCEA ceremony to remember<\/p>\n

Cerbone\u2019s retirement ceremony featured a presentation of colors, the national anthem, and heartfelt speeches from colleagues.<\/p>\n

\u201cTommy is a friend to many, but more importantly, he\u2019s a mentor to all,\u2019’ Bell said. \u201dLet\u2019s face it, his courtroom testimony \u2014 flawless. A wealth of knowledge, professional, loyal, and dedicated to the unit.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe officers that came through the doors as new officers would go to him on a regular basis for information and guidance,\u2019’ he said.<\/p>\n

The Detectives\u2019 Endowment Association honored Cerbone with a plaque, calling him the \u201cquintessential representative of that gold shield.\u201d <\/p>\n

Highway 5 officers presented another plaque recognizing his professionalism and friendship. The ceremony concluded with \u201cGod Bless America\u201d and Cerbone\u2019s final call and walkout.<\/p>\n

\"DetectiveDetective Thomas Cerbone retires from NYPD Highway Unit #5, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Advance\/SILive.com | Jan Somma-Hammel)STATEN ISLAND ADVANCEFamily Matters<\/p>\n

Cerbone credits family members for their unwavering support throughout his career. \u201cThey never know if you\u2019re coming home,\u201d he said, acknowledging the stress his loved ones endured. <\/p>\n

His wife, Lori, who has been by his side since they were 17, summed up their journey simply by saying: \u201cThe rest is history.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe did it for the sacrifice of the city,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019re just extremely proud of him. There was a few scary times, but, thank God, he was fine. We\u2019re just thankful that he made it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The family views retirement as a chance for Cerbone to focus on himself after decades of sacrifice, including missed holidays and milestones. To celebrate, they\u2019re planning a \u2018big one\u2019 \u2014 a trip to France to visit Normandy, Versailles and Paris in April.<\/p>\n

His daughter, Krista, offered advice to other law enforcement families: \u201cGive yourself some grace.\u201d She acknowledged the sacrifices, but said the pride of being part of an NYPD family makes it worthwhile.<\/p>\n

\"DetectiveDetective Thomas Cerbone retires from NYPD Highway Patrol #5 on the afternoon of Tuesday Nov. 25, 2025.Advance\/SILive.com | Shaina McLawrencePassing the torch<\/p>\n

Cerbone\u2019s message to young officers is clear: Respect the profession and embrace the fundamentals. <\/p>\n

He urged recruits to put down their phones, listen intently, and rely on their own eyes and ears. In his view, traditional policing skills and situational awareness will always matter more than digital distractions.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that everybody should encourage their children to respect and admire the police and look at them as the role models they are,\u201d Cerbone said. \u201cMore people should encourage their children to become NYPD officers because it is the greatest job.\u201d<\/p>\n

As he steps away, Cerbone said hopes his legacy \u2014 four decades of service, countless dignitaries escorted and thousands of lives touched \u2014 has made New York City a better place. <\/p>\n

\"DetectiveDetective Thomas Cerone retires from NYPD Highway Unit #5, Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2025. (Advance\/SILive.com | Jan Somma-Hammel)STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. \u2014 After more than 40 years with the New York City Police Department, Detective Thomas…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":52773,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[9,24,63,134,136,135],"class_list":["post-52772","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-staten-island","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-staten-island","tag-staten-island-headlines","tag-staten-island-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52772","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52772"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52772\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/52773"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52772"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52772"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52772"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}