Dozens of names of NYPD heroes lost in the line of duty — including slain Detective Jonathan Diller, 31, a married dad who was fatally shot by an ex-con in the line of duty last year — were enshrined on the hallowed Wall of Heroes at police headquarters Thursday.
NYPD brass and hundreds of family members gathered in the lobby of 1 Police Plaza as plaques were ceremoniously unveiled, revealing the names of 50 fallen cops of all ranks and one civilian employee who died while performing their jobs or as a result of 9/11-related illnesses.
Diller — whose relatives sat in the front row — was fatally shot just below his bulletproof vest during a March 25, 2024, traffic stop in Far Rockaway, Queens.
The three-year veteran was promoted to detective posthumously.
“Their names are being added to our Hall of Heroes, but their absence has already been felt at roll calls, in squad cars in homes across the city and the state,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch told those gathered at the ceremony.
“From police officer to chief, uniformed and civilian, the names displayed here represent the very best of us.”
One of the highest-ranking members added to the wall was Chief of Transit Michael A. Ansbro — a seasoned transit cop and supervisor with nearly four decades of service — who assumed the role following the 1996 merger of the NYPD and NYC Transit Police, according to an obituary.
On Sept. 11, 2001, he went to evacuate the Chambers Street subway station after hearing there were commuters trapped following the collapse of the South Tower.
He survived when the North Tower then collapsed onto the station, and went on to retire about four months later.
He died in 2023 after a battle with 9/11-related cancer.
The name of Chief Gerald Nelson, who served as the commanding officer of Patrol Borough Brooklyn North before his retirement, was also added to the wall following his death from 9/11-related cancer last year.
He previously served with the New York City Housing Authority Police Department for 22 years before its merger with the NYPD in 1995.
One NYPD civilian employee’s name was also added to the Wall of Heroes Thursday – 37-year department electrician Joseph M. Abate, who lost his battle with 9/11-related lung cancer in 2021.
“Their sacrifices took different forms,” Tisch said.
“Whether marked by a single moment or paid out slowly over the years after 9/11, but all shared the same foundation, service without hesitation: courage without condition, and commitment without compromise.”
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