The Chinese community celebrates 4 top promotions for Chinese Americans in SF Police Department

(SAN FRANCISCO) The Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association (CCBA) and BeChinatown co-hosted a banquet in Chinatown on February 25 to celebrate the promotions of four highest ranking Chinese American Police Officers in the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD).

It was also the largest banquet event in Chinatown since the pandemic began in March 2020. Over 600 guests attended the event in celebration of the promotions and showing their appreciation to the police officers for their efforts to combat the anti-Asian violence.

Four honorees in the banquet event included Commander Daryl Fong who supervises five police stations in the Field Operation Bureau, Commander Paul Yep who is assigned to be the Chief of Staff at the Risk Management Unit, Central Police Station Captain Julian Ng and Ingleside Station Captain Derrick Lew.

Former Deputy Chief Greg Yee retired last year. Commanders Fong and Yep become the highest ranking of Chinese and Asian police officers in the entire police force. Fong and Yep are also the only Chinese Americans at the 15-member Command Staff which is the top management team in SFPD.

Fong and Yep represent 13% of Chinese Americans on the Command Staff, while the Chinese and Asian population in the City has grown to 36%. Asian is the only ethnic group which is under-represented in SFPD.

Two Chinese American Supervisors Gordon Mar and Connie Chan called for more hiring and promotions of the Asian American officers in the police department. Other supervisors echoed the needs of more bilingual police officers to be hired and promoted in the City.

"We are here honoring our heroes. They are amazing public servants. But from my perspective, their jobs are more dangerous when crime occurs. You made us proud. We salute our Asian brothers," said City Attorney David Chiu.

"We put the right person at the right time for the right position," said Police Chief William Scott in the event. "All four of them are very outstanding."

Scott spoke of Ng and Lew who were assigned to handle violent crimes and investigations prior to the promotion. “They had successfully taken off many guns from the streets and made the community safer.”

"Commander Yep was the first one to have the experience managing three different stations. Captain Ng is the first new captain to head the Central Station,” said Deputy Chief David Lazar who oversees ten police stations in the City.