Brockport Police Chief, Mark Cuzzupoli, was sworn into office as the new Chief of Police on April 5. Although Mark is new to the position of the Chief of the Brockport Police Department, he is not new to BPD or the community. Mark has been a lifetime resident to the area and been serving the community in law enforcement for nearly a quarter of a century.
Mark Cuzzupoli grew up in Hamlin with his parents and brother and sister. Mark was an avid hockey player and he attended the Brockport school district. He met his wife, Robin, when they were juniors in high school. Soon after, they became high school sweethearts. Mark and Robin recently celebrated their 25-year wedding anniversary and are locally raising their beautiful family of four children.
The seed of a career in law enforcement was planted at an early age for Mark. His godfather was a State Trooper and Robin’s father worked in Corrections. Mark also was greatly influenced by retired Brockport Chief of Police, Mark Depferd, whose son played hockey with Mark. These influences, plus the support of his parents, led Mark into pursuing an education in criminal justice.
Mark graduated from SUNY Brockport in 1992 and went on to full time security and part time policing under the sponsorship of Chief Schrank of the Ogden Police Department. In seeking fulltime position in law enforcement and benefits for his family, Mark took a position in the Monroe County Jail. In 1996 Mark’s dream of becoming a full time police officer at Brockport Police came to a reality. Over the course of several decades Mark worked under three different Chiefs of Police. He worked various shifts and learned many aspects of the police department. In 2002 he was promoted to Sergeant.
Mark underwent a cancer battle shortly after and had taken a leave of absence for his treatment. After overcoming thyroid cancer he returned to his position at Brockport Police. In 2010 he was promoted to Lieutenant. In this capacity he worked closely with Chief of Police Daniel Varrenti. Varrenti took Mark under his wing and began grooming him for the possibility of someday taking over his position as the Chief of Police. Chief Varrenti encouraged Mark, taught him many aspects of administrative responsibilities at the department as well as expert criminal investigation and drug enforcement training. During Mark’s years at the Brockport Police he directly supervised some high profile crimes such as the Valentine’s Day murders in 2009 and the Holly Colino arrest for murder last spring. He also participated in the start of some great community events such as National Night Out and SPARTAC (Students, Police and Residents Together Against Crime).
As Chief Cuzzupoli now holds the reins of the Brockport Police Department, he oversees 15 fulltime officers including Lt. Stephen Mesiti, Sgt Paul Wheat and Sgt Robert Hagen. He hopes to add a part time position in the future. He also has two civilian employees: Administrator Bambie Zimmerman, who has been working at the department for over 25 years, and Clerk Kayla Thompson. “I have been preparing for this position for several years and it’s a smooth transition,” said Chief Cuzzupoli. Cuzzupoli feels very fortunate to have the support of his wife who has been amazing with support and understanding. He is also grateful for the continued contact and support from Chief Varrenti and the other area Chiefs of Police including Monroe County Sheriff Todd Baxter.
Chief Cuzzupoli has many goals but one of his bigger focuses is to double the community service the police department provides to the community. He plans to have more “foot patrol” to help increase the visibility of the officers and build stronger community relations with residents and businesses. Cuzzupoli wants to connect more with the youth in the community. Recently one of his officers stopped to shoot some basketball hoops with some kids outside playing basketball. He will continue to work closely with the college and looks forward to building relationships with the local church leaders as well. Ultimately, Chief Cuzzupoli would like the community to know that he has an open door policy. “Whether it’s good or bad I want to hear all the feedback,” said Cuzzupoli. “I want this department and all the officers to be very approachable.” He hopes the increase in community contact and stronger relations helps build more trust with the residents and the police as well as improve community safety. To stay up to date with Brockport Police Department happenings visit their Facebook page.
