By Carla Zanoni
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
WASHINGTON HEIGHTS — Police officers, residents and local schoolchildren came together for a small parade and memorial Mass Monday to honor the 22nd anniversary of a fallen police officer and neighborhood hero.
Police Officer Michael Buczek was gunned down in 1988 while investigating a group of suspected drug dealers in Washington Heights. He was just 24 years old.
"Michael was a peace officer," said Ted Buczek, the 84-year-old World War II veteran and father of the slain officer, during a memorial ceremony at the Church of St. Elizabeth on 187th Street Monday. "He worked hard to maintain peace on the streets."
The annual event consisted of a short march to the church from P.S. 48, which is named in Buczek’s honor, a full mass and a performance by the NYPD Pipe and Drum band of the Emerald Society outside the church at the corner of Wadsworth Avenue.
"My family and I love this neighborhood and everyone gathered here, especially you little munchkins,” said Ted Buczek, looking at the rows of students who attended the mass from St. Elizabeth and P.S. 48.
It took 12 years to extradite from the Dominican Republic and prosecute two of the three men who were accused of the shooting, with the third man dying while in custody overseas, according to the New York Times.
In honor of Buczek’s death, his family created a foundation in his name and sponsored the creation of the Michael Buczek Little League. They remain active in the community to this day.
"We recognize the courage of these officers as they worked day in and day out to make this city, this neighborhood, a better place,” 34th Precinct Captain Jose Navarro said.
"The day Michael died, he died making these streets safer for an inner-city kid like me."
