The new top cop of the 102nd Precinct in Richmond Hill plans to use focused enforcement in his efforts to reduce crime and quality of life violations in the community.

Captain Armando DeLeon, 38, a 16-year police department veteran, was appointed to the top spot in the 102nd Precinct last week as Deputy Inspector Charles McEvoy was transferred to head the 103rd Precinct in Jamaica.

DeLeon began his police career in 1993. His first assignment was with the Housing Bureau in Brooklyn. He worked in the Narcotics Division as an undercover officer before being promoted to sergeant in 2001 and assigned as an Anti-Crime Unit supervisor for three years. In 2004 he was promoted to lieutenant and headed the Street Narcotics Enforcement Unit in East Flatbush.

Achieving the rank of captain in 2007, he was assigned as the executive officer of the 100th Precinct in Rockaway for a stint, and then served as the 103rd Precinct’s executive officer before coming to the 102nd Precinct as the commander.

DeLeon said the biggest quality of life complaint in the precinct's neighborhoods is noise. The commander said that along with fighting crime, tackling noise would be his number one priority. He plans to address the noise issue by focusing his resources on the chronic noise locations in the community and ensuring that the noisemakers are aware of his zero-tolerance policy.

Acknowledging a recent spike in burglaries in the precinct, he urged residents to lock their doors and close their windows. He noted that residents looking to get the benefit of the cool breezes give burglars the opportunity to gain entrance to their homes. “We can’t make it easy for the burglar,” said DeLeon.

He added that if residents see anything out of the ordinary on their block, they should immediately call 911. An example he cited would be an individual dressed as a utility employee knocking on the doors of multiple houses on the block with no company vehicle parked outside.

DeLeon said that with the recent arrests that his burglary team has made, the precinct has seen a decline in burglaries. NYPD Compstat crime statistics for the week ending October 4 showed that burglaries dropped by 71 percent.

DeLeon also advises women to always be aware of what is going on around them. The captain urged that when getting off the train in the evening and about to walk home, if they don’t feel safe, they should call someone to escort them. He also suggested that they carry a whistle.

“Try not to walk the streets while talking on a cell phone,” said DeLeon, adding, “while you are talking on a cell phone you are not paying attention to your surroundings and you make yourself vulnerable.”

The captain said he has received a very warm reception from the community and at the four civic association meetings that he has attended. Fielding concerns about noise and other quality of life issues from the civic members, he promised he would make these issues a top priority.