Stephanie Gaskell, The New York Post
The NYPD is shopping for new bulletproof vests for its officers after tests showed that about 1,000 vests were flawed, an official said yesterday.
The police bought 20,000 vests from Florida-based Point Blank Body Armor - at a cost of $400 each.
But tests showed that vests did not stop bullets in NYPD tests.
The company has agreed to replace 6,300 of the vests. But an NYPD official said yesterday that the department will buy its bulletproof vests from someone else.
“The department is exploring other companies for purchases of bullet-resistant vests,” said NYPD spokesman Michael O’Looney. “The safety of our officers is one of the department’s highest priorities.”
NYPD officers have complained about the vests, which wrinkle and don’t fit properly.
City Councilman Eric Gioia held a news conference at City Hall yesterday urging the police to stop buying defective vests from Point Blank until the company can prove that its product is safe.
“These bulletproof vests are in fact not bulletproof,” said Gioia (D-Queens), who is chairman of the council’s Oversight and Investigations Committee. “Until the vests are tested and proven safe, they should not be used to protect our brave police officers.”
The Army, which also has a contract with Point Blank, is investigating the company after blaming the death of one of its soldiers in Afghanistan on a flawed bulletproof vest.