Capt. Ralph Forgione
January 5, By Christian Murray
A new commanding officer has been appointed to the 108 Police Precinct, which covers Sunnyside, Woodside and Long Island City.
Captain Ralph Forgione, who has spent most of his career in Queens, will be taking over the command following the departure of Deputy Inspector John Travaglia.
This will be Forgione’s first time as a commanding officer, spending several years as an executive officer—or second in command—at various Queens precincts. He was most recently the executive officer at the 114th Precinct in Astoria. Prior to that, he was an executive officer at the 111th Precinct in Bayside; the 110th Precinct in Elmhurst; and 112th Precinct in Forest Hills.
Forgione takes the top job at a time when crime in the precinct has been on the decline.
The crime rate for the precinct—based on the number of reported major indexed crimes—has dropped significantly. Crime was down about 4 percent for 2016 (through December 25), compared to the same period in 2015.
Forgione said he has big shoes to fill coming in after Travaglia. However, he said that like Travaglia, who was an executive officer at the 114th before taking the 108 command, his experience in Queens will help him in the role.
He said that he has got to know people’s concerns in Queens and is aware of crime patterns in neighboring areas.
Forgione, who was born and raised in Queens, said that he will listen to everyone’s complaints, whether they are minor or major.
“I tell my officers to treat people like they are a family member,” he said. “They have to be concerned about people’s complaints and handle a situation to the best of their ability.”
He said that his door will be always open to the public and that he will personally be addressing many complaints himself.
Forgione said he looks forward to getting to know the community. “All I have heard is great things about people here.”
