New York bids farewell to slain Guyanese NYPD Officer

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Thousands of police officers turned out on Wednesday to pay their respects to fallen Guyanese NYPD cop Randolph Holder. He will be laid to rest in his native Guyana.
Thousands of police officers turned out on Wednesday to pay their respects to fallen Guyanese NYPD cop Randolph Holder. He will be laid to rest in his native Guyana.

The New York Daily News has reported that thousands of rain-soaked cops packed the streets in Queens Wednesday to honor their slain NYPD brother as a first-rate son, a first-class DJ — and a first-grade detective.

According to NYD News, Police Commissioner Bill Bratton announced the posthumous promotion for Officer Randolph Holder, who received a standing ovation inside the Queens church where his body rested inside a gold casket.

Mayor de Blasio, in a pointed political message, said the Oct. 20 shooting of Holder — allegedly by a drug-addicted career criminal — should mark a turning point in the fight against guns.

In our nation, changes must be made to keep guns out of the hands of criminals,” said the mayor before a church packed with mourners. “In (Holder’s) name, we will not give up.”

The Rev. Leslie Mullings, who led the 2-hour service in the Greater Allen AME Cathedral in Jamaica, called for a crackdown on the trafficking of out-of-state guns in New York.

Randolph Holder
Randolph Holder

The .40-caliber weapon that police believe was used to kill Holder, 33, came to East Harlem from South Carolina, police said.

Tyrone (Peanut) Howard, 30, was arrested after Holder’s partner shot him in the leg as the suspect tried to flee the murder scene in East Harlem, police said.

Earning a detective’s shield was one of Holder’s highest goals as a cop after he immigrated to New York from his native Guyana in 2002 to join his dad.

Bratton also read from a 2010 letter written by Holder in which the aspiring cop details his motivation to join the force. “I decided I could be a role model and make a difference,” he wrote.

Holder, on the force five years, was also eulogized by his fiancée and his aunt. Several speakers mentioned his skill as a DJ for family parties.

“Even as we mourn his death, we celebrate,” said his aunt Margaret Holder. “To be out of the body is to be with the Lord. May his soul rest in peace.”

Holder will be buried in his native Guyana. He leaves behind a large family, including a 16-year-old daughter.

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