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| Antoneta Pepkolaj |
A 23-year-old Albanian police officer grabbed the New York Police Department's highest award and recognition of the month for bravery and excellent work results. Antoneta Pepkolaj, a police officer for 1 year, excelled and received an appreciation and triumph that other police officers have been working for years and have not achieved yet.
She risks her life every day to protect the lives of others. Just a few days ago, she single-handedly arrested a criminal armed with two pistols who was threatening some children on the street. Antoneta Pepkolaj came to the United States of America with her family at the age of 15 and being the youngest and the darling of the house, she had a special passion for toy guns. Antoneta graduated from the 6-month New York Police Academy, achieving very high results, and currently maintains the safety of New York citizens in the Bronx neighborhood. She is brave, loving, energetic, dedicated, patriotic, smiling, cooperative, and very enthusiastic. She has very positive and inexhaustible energy. A typical working day for officer Antoneta Pepkolaj begins with receiving a phone call requesting an urgent intervention from the Police. She explains to Dielli that the most frequent calls are about: "Domestic violence, possession of weapons, theft, violence, and fights of all kinds".
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| Antoneta Pepkolaj on duty in New York |
Since Covid-19, Antoneta shows that citizens have an emotional overload and many complaints about mental health problems. The security situation in the city has changed, says Antoneta. Nothing is like before, people are more aggressive and sensitive, and the police face daily increased challenges and extreme difficulties. Since the "Black Lives Matter" protests, the police are seen differently, the work has become more complicated and difficult and we are not as loved and respected in the community as before and we need a lot of work to increase the image, the service, explains officer Pepkolaj. Challenges never discourage us, but give us strength and the desire to work even harder for the good of the community, says officer Pepkolaj. A few weeks ago in the Bronx at her daily work, Antoneta risked her life from a knife attack. This has not demotivated her but has increased her strength and determination to protect people's lives. She shows that the most difficult work is the dialogue with people in a difficult psychological state who want to commit suicide or various attacks on citizens. She remembers in detail the first day of work when she was faced with suicide and managed, together with her officer partner, thanks to the quick intervention and professional exercises, to bring the person back to life. She loves her job very much and calls it a sacred mission to help others, public order and safety, the lives of citizens and their well-being in the city and state of New York. Antonetta is an example of success, pride, motivation, dedication, and piety in American society and for the Albanian community. She is a member of the Albanian Police Association in New York and helps the Albanian community not only as a police officer but also as a servant in ceremonies or events of the Albanian community in New York.