NYPD Chief of Detectives James Essig resigns; police brass told by new Commissioner Edward Caban department going in a different direction

NYPD Chief of Detectives James Essig called it quits Friday, and he was one of several top police officials asked by Police Commissioner Edward Caban to submit their resignations, said a high-ranking department source.

Asked for comment, Essig told the Daily News he “had a ball” and enjoyed his regular briefings with reporters assigned to 1 Police Plaza.

Essig is a 40-year NYPD veteran who was named chief of detectives in March 2021.

The personnel moves are part of a long-standing NYPD practice in which each new police commissioner shapes the department’s leadership team to their liking.

Caban became acting commissioner July 1 and was formally named commissioner on July 17, replacing ex-Commissioner Keechant Sewell.

This week, the new commissioner thanked a number of top brass for their service and asked they resign to make way for others.

“The moves represent one facet of the commissioner’s ongoing work to assemble the strongest team of executives possible to lead the department into the future,” the NYPD said in a statement.

“While the Commissioner did not immediately name the departing members, he thanked each of them individually for their long years of public service, unwavering integrity, and steadfast commitment to the NYPD’s public safety mission.

But Paul DiGiacomo, head of the Detectives’ Endowment Association, said Essig will be sorely missed.

“Chief of Detectives James Essig is a genuine police executive who knows the crime-fighting business like the back of his hand,” DiGiacomo said. “His care for the detectives he led was evident in his decisions — and his partnership with the DEA was seamless.

“Chief Essig leaves behind a tremendous legacy in the NYPD.”

It was not immediately clear who would replace Essig.

In a message sent Friday to all members of the department, Caban said he was placing the right people into the right spots to do the right job for the city.

“I ask you to embrace these changes as we step into a future that is as bright as it is promising,” he said. “I ask you to join me as we salute our departing colleagues, as they exit our privileged arena of public service with their heads held high.

“And I ask you to welcome the leadership team taking shape before us and to be fully confident in knowing we will all be better for the creative, dynamic, and forward-looking individuals at the top.”