They’re blood brothers now.
Two NYPD sergeants who were struck by the same bullet while responding to a robbery at a mahjong parlor in Manhattan were hailed as “the very best” by Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch at a promotions ceremony Friday.
Sergeants Christopher Leap, 35, and Carl Johnson, 44, were both raised in rank to special assignment sergeants — just over a year after they were shot by a known gang member.
“I say we’re blood brothers now,” Johnson, who said the two sergeants had never met before the Aug. 1, 2024 shooting, told The Post after the ceremony.
The duo responded separately to reports of a suspected gang member who had allegedly robbed several women inside the Lower East Side parlor and quickly got into a struggle with the suspect, cops said.
Joshua Dorsett, a member of the notorious Up the Hill gang, allegedly fired off a bullet that hit Johnson in the groin, pass through him and hit Leap in the leg, police said. Dorsett is facing charges of assault, robbery, and criminal possession of a weapon. The case is pending.
“While canvassing the area, they spotted the suspect and in the struggle to arrest him, both were shot,” Tisch said at the ceremony at One Police Plaza.
“Yet even after being wounded, they didn’t back down,” she said, adding the cops took Dorsett, 22, into custody despite their injuries. “That is bravery carried to its limit.”
They were two of eight to be promoted to the rank of Sergeant Special Assignment, and among 151 police officers promoted at the ceremony. Their new rank comes with a raise.
Leap followed in his father’s footsteps when he became an NYPD sergeant.
“It’s definitely a dangerous job, and there’s a lot of good people out there, but there’s also bad people that are out there too,” Leap, of Babylon, Long Island, told The Post.
Leap’s wife was eight months pregnant when he was shot.
The 12-year NYPD veteran returned to work several months ago.
“It feels great to be promoted and recognized for our hard work,” he said, adding that his mom recently died. “I know she’s smiling down and beaming with pride.”
He praised the department and the hard work of his fellow officers.
“This is a testament to all the hard work that every member of the New York City Police Department does day in and day out,” he said.
Johnson, who lives in Queens, ended up being out of work for about seven months because a bullet fragment was stuck in his leg.
“The bullet is still in my leg,” Johnson, who was born in Birmingham, England, said. “Every step that I take, I can feel it.”
But the dad of two kids ages 5 and 12 is about to go back to work, he said.
“It’s a dangerous job, but even walking down the street could be dangerous, you know?” the 17-year veteran said. “So as cops … you just have to go out there, try to do your best and make the world a better place.”
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