De Blasio’s NYPD security head expected to surrender in obstruction probe

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The NYPD inspector accused of obstructing an investigation into former Mayor Bill de Blasio’s misuse of his security detail is expected to surrender in Manhattan Criminal Court Wednesday.

Howard Redmond will turn himself in regarding the alleged obstruction, although the exact charges he will face have not been made public, sources told The Post.

Redmond was also “dismissed” from the NYPD where he served as the Executive Protection Unit under de Blasio, police said Wednesday without providing any additional details.

He had initially been suspended without pay by the department on July 11.

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office has been weighing criminal charges against Redmond since 2021 after the city’s Department of Investigation found that he “actively obstructed and sought to thwart” its probe into de Blasio’s alleged misuse of NYPD security while in office.

Investigators were looking into de Blasio and his family’s personal use of the security detail and said that Redmond stonewalled in a 49-page report.
William Farrington

Investigators were looking into de Blasio and his family’s personal use of the security detail and said that Redmond stonewalled in a 49-page report. They suggested that the Manhattan DA could slap the inspector with criminal charges in the same report.

Remond was accused of refusing to turn over his phone to investigators for months and when he finally did, he destroyed it “under the guise of receiving an upgraded device.”


Mayor de Blasio (pictured) leaves City Hall today during the Coronavirus pandemic.
Redmond was “dismissed” from the NYPD where he served as the Executive Protection Unit under de Blasio.
Gregory P. Mango

“DOI has concluded that the NYPD inspector in charge of the First Family’s security detail actively obstructed and sought to thwart this investigation, frustrating DOI’s efforts to learn the full facts regarding these allegations,” the report stated.

Despite Redmond’s alleged interference, the Department of Investigation uncovered that the ex-mayor used the security team while traveling in other states for his failed presidential bid. The NYPD shelled out at least $319,794 to accompany de Blasio during his campaign across the US.


Howard Redmond
Howard Redmond will turn himself in regarding the alleged obstruction, although the exact charges he will face have not been made public.

Investigators also said he used the detail to do errands, move his daughter into a new place and that his son, Dante de Blasio, used the detail as a personal “concierge service.”

“In practice, what is happening is that it’s not security,” former DOI Commissioner Margaret Garnett said at the time of the report’s release. “It’s essentially a concierge service, primarily for Dante.”

“It’s no way to run a railroad,” she summed it up.

In June, de Blasio was slapped with the largest fine ever issued by the city’s Conflicts of Interest Board for the misuse of governmental resources during his long-shot White House bid.

The watchdog group billed de Blasio a $155,000 fine as punishment, plus another $320,000 to reimburse the treasury for the expenses the NYPD incurred as the security detail accompanied him around the country.

The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office didn’t immediately return a request for comment.

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