Bernard Kerik, NYPD commissioner during 9/11, dies at 69

CBS News

06-06-2025

Bernard Kerik, who served as New York City's police commissioner on 9/11 and later pleaded guilty to tax fraud before being pardoned, has died. He was 69.
FBI Director Kash Patel said that Kerik's death Thursday came after an unspecified "private battle with illness."
Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who tapped Kerik as a bodyguard for his 1993 mayoral campaign and later appointed him to lead the NYPD, reflected on their long history on his show Thursday.
"We've been together since the beginning. He's like my brother," Giuliani said through tears. "I was a better man for having known Bernie. I certainly was a braver and stronger man."
Kerik, who joined the NYPD in 1986, served as the department's 40th commissioner from 2000 to 2001 under Giuliani.
"For nearly two decades, Kerik served and protected New Yorkers in the NYPD, including helping rebuild the city in the aftermath of 9/11. We offer our deepest condolences to his family and loved ones," the NYPD wrote on social media.
"Don't think there are very few people in my life that I relied on more," Giuliani added. "Nor are there too many people in my life, actually, there was no one in my life that was braver than he was."
Bernard Kerik, former New York Police Commissioner, speaks during a news conference outside Manhattan criminal court in New York on May 20, 2024.
Alex Kent/Bloomberg via Getty Images
In 2003, Kerik served in President George W. Bush's administration as the head of a provisional police force in Iraq.
"It was just this afternoon that I stopped by the hospital to see Bernie Kerik, my friend of nearly 30 years, before his passing. He was with his loved ones who are in my prayers tonight. He was a great New Yorker and American. Rest in peace, my friend," New York City Mayor Mayor Eric Adams said in a statement.
"He epitomizes what I always say: Generals lead from the front. Bernie led from the front. He was willing to lead his troops into battle protecting his city," Adams added Friday.
Kerik, an Army veteran, rose to the pinnacle of law enforcement before a fall so steep that even a city jail named after him was renamed.
In 2009, he pleaded guilty to federal tax fraud and false statement charges, partially stemming from over $250,000 in apartment renovations he received from a construction firm that authorities say counted on Kerik to convince New York officials it had no organized crime links. He served three years in prison before his release in 2013.
President Trump pardoned Kerik during a 2020 clemency blitz. Kerik was among the guests feting Mr. Trump after his first appearance in federal court in Florida in a case related to his handling of classified documents, attending the former president's remarks at his Bedminster, New Jersey, club.
"I think that the legacy that he really leaves is that he was a cop, he saved a lot of lives, and he never stopped," Timothy Parlatore, Kerik's close friend, told CBS News New York.
Attorney General Pam Bondi called Kerik a "dear friend" in a post to social media sending prayers to his family and friends.
Kerik caught the Bush administration off guard when he abruptly withdrew his nomination to run the Department of Homeland Security in 2004.
At the time he said he had uncovered information that led him to question the immigration status of a person he employed as a housekeeper and nanny.
The sprawling homeland security bureaucracy, created by Bush in the aftermath of 9/11, oversees the federal agencies responsible for enforcement of the nation's immigration laws, among many others.
In 2005, Kerik founded the Kerik Group, a crisis and risk management consulting firm.
He later worked for the former mayor of New York City surrounding the efforts to overturn Mr. Trump's 2020 loss.
Patel described Kerik in a post on social media as "a warrior, a patriot, and one of the most courageous public servants this country has ever known."
"He was decorated more than 100 times for bravery, valor, and service, having rescued victims from burning buildings, survived assassination attempts, and brought some of the world's most dangerous criminals to justice," he said. "His legacy is not just in the medals or the titles, but in the lives he saved, the city he helped rebuild, and the country he served with honor."
contributed to this report.