Nearly two years after NYPD cop Randolph Holder was fatally shot by a reputed gangbanger, hundreds of uniformed officers and family members joined together Friday to rename the Queens street where he grew up in his honor.
The intersection of Briar Place and Collier Avenue in Far Rockaway is now known as Detective Randolph Holder Way, after the third-generation officer.
“It makes me feel special, really special and honored,” his father, Randolph Holder, Sr., said at the ceremony, which was attended by 250 uniformed officers and other supporters. “He would’ve wanted it. He was a humble guy, but he loved to see expression[s] of appreciation.”
Mayor de Blasio, NYPD Commissioner James O’Neill, Harlem City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and Erik Hernandez, the commanding officer of PSA 5, Holder’s unit at the time he was killed, were also in attendance.
“He had lived the American dream, literally,” de Blasio said of Holder. “He came here to the Rockaways from Guyana to carry out a family legacy that is extraordinary: a grandfather, father, an uncle all having worn the uniform to protect others. That is what we found out about Detective Holder, that he was everything we hope for for every family and for everyone who comes to this great country.”
O’Neill spoke directly to Holder’s father and stepmother, Princess.
“What you bring to us is critical to our mission,” the commissioner said. “It was a sad and tragic day [in] October 2015 — you lost so much but you continue to stand with us each and every time. I thank you for that.”
Princess said the new sign is a comfort in her continued grief.
“It’s very difficult for me,” she said. “It gets worse every day. These events just bring back memories. But at least today is a very positive day, and I’m very excited to see the sign in his memory. Every time I come out [of the house] I will see the sign, and that will make me feel nice.
Holder’s fiancee, Mary Muhammad, 34,said, “It made me feel proud but it also made me feel sad at the same time.
“I am overwhelmed. I am happy that Randy is being recognized for the great man and police officer that he is and was, but I am also sad that he is not here with us. I miss him every single day.”
Shooter Tyrone Howard fatally shot Holder on an FDR Drive footbridge in East Harlem as he fled the scene of a non-fatal shooting nearby.
He was found guilty in March and banished to life behind bars without the possibility of parole in April.
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