Add The New York Post on Google The NYPD chief who vaulted over a barricade to chase down ISIS-inspired wannabe bombers outside Gracie Mansion earlier this year was awarded the department’s distinguished Medal for Valor Monday.
Assistant Chief Aaron Edwards – the commanding officer of Patrol Borough Manhattan North – was among five heroes in blue who received the NYPD’s third-highest honor for their efforts taking down the suspected terrorists as unruly warring protests raged outside the mayor’s mansion back in March.
“Today was very special,” Edwards said with the blue and gold medal around his neck. “It was really important that we got a chance to get recognized by the mayor, by the city, by the department — but not for me, really — for all the cops that were working at Gracie that day.”
Edwards was on duty outside the Upper East Side residence during a rowdy March 7 anti-Muslim rally when two counter-protesters — Emir Balat, 18, and Ibrahim Kayumi, 19 — tossed homemade bombs into the crowd.
Edwards swiftly hopped a barricade and helped chase down Balat — without knowing that the crudely made devices would fail to detonate.
“We were working a pretty contentious protest,” the 23-year veteran recalled. “We knew there would be some back and forth between the two groups.”
“I certainly wasn’t expecting what occurred, but….[we] saw an individual light what we now know was an IED and immediately started running towards him – just an attempt to get his attention, scream at him, apprehend him, do something, just do anything, you know,” he said. “He drops his device and he begins to flee. He jumps over the barrier, I give chase behind him.”
The humble hero credited Sgt. Luis Navarro – who initially spotted Balat – for alerting him to the threat. Navarro also received a Medal for Valor.
Both suspects – who said they were inspired by the radical terror group — have since been turned over to the feds and are being held on terror charges.
Edwards became something of a household name after the NYPD’s X account featured a photo of him mid-leap, with the caption, “Some heroes wear capes — Chief Aaron Edwards wears blue.”
The photo made the cover of The Post, with the headline, “SAVING GRACIE.”
Edwards recalled that Mayor Zohran Mamdani personally called him to thank him for his efforts in keeping New Yorkers safe.
“He was very thankful for what I did, with the work all of the cops did that day, on behalf of himself, but also on behalf of the city,” Edwards said.
And his bravery didn’t go unnoticed by his two sons, Aaron, 11, and Carter, 8.
“I know that he’s done a lot for the city, and I’m really, really proud of him, and I’m really proud that he’s my dad,” Aaron said. “My friends have been saying, ‘I wish I had that dad.’”
“I thank him for his service and he’s the best dad ever,” Carter added.
Edwards said the viral barricade-hopping moment gave his kids “a little popularity at school.”
“It’s nice to know that you’re the kids’ hero, and I certainly feel that way,” he said. “But also, I hope they heard some of the other stories of the members being honored here…and they know that it’s not just me out there – [it’s] 30-plus thousand in uniforms.”
Those honored at the 1 Police Plaza ceremony also included Det. Didarul Islam – who posthumously received the department’s highest recognition, the Medal of Honor – after he was randomly slain by a deranged rifle-toting madman while guarding a Midtown Manhattan skyscraper last summer.
His widow, Jamila Akhter, accepted the honor on his behalf while carrying their baby, Arham.
Addressing the sea of blue, Mamdani called Islam “a man of humility, integrity, generosity, and kindness, who was senselessly murdered last summer in the largest mass shooting our city has seen for the last 25 years.”
Det. Brett Boller, a rookie cop shot in the leg while attempting to arrest a Queens gunman who bolted off an MTA bus in 2023, was also awarded the Medal of Honor.
His partner, Officer Anthony Rock, received the Police Combat Cross for jumping to his aid.
“I think today is a celebration of how far I came, how far we came, and all the people who helped us get here, because it was definitely a long road, physically, emotionally, for us,” Boller said.
“We just spent a ton of time together, especially in the months during my recovery,” the detective added. “And he was dealing with the emotions of being involved in something like that, and we got to go through that together….And now I think we’re both in pretty good spots.”
