Retired NYPD cop dies in apparent drowning while surfing in icy waters off Gilgo Beach: cops

An ex-NYPD cop died in an apparent drowning while surfing in the icy waters off Long Island’s Gilgo Beach over the weekend, cops said. 

Jack Shapiro, 54, of Holbrook — who officials say retired from the NYPD more than a decade ago — became unresponsive as he surfed just off the Babylon beach around 2:20 p.m. Sunday, Suffolk County Police said. 

A good Samaritan pulled him out of the water and onto the shore where Marine Bureau officers responded, authorities said.

First responders performed CPR, but Shapiro could not be saved. 

He was rushed in an ambulance to Good Samaritan University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, cops said. 

Shapiro retired from the NYPD in 2013, a department spokesperson said. He spent some time working in the confines of the 83rd Precinct, which covers Bushwick, Brooklyn, sources said. 

“Everyone in the 83 family is devastated,” said a cop who worked with Shapiro in the 90s. “Jack was a great cop and an even greater person we can’t believe it.”

“He was a good swimmer and he has been surfing for years.”

Police have described Shapiro’s death as an apparent drowning, but the official cause will be determined by the Suffolk County Medical Examiner’s Office. 

Water temperatures off Gilgo Beach sat slightly above 39 degrees Sunday.

Detectives are asking anyone with information about the incident to call 631-852-6392.