NYPD Highway District 5 boss Joseph Bell calling it a career after 37 years: 'It was a great ride'

Lt. Joseph Bell, commander of the NYPD’s Highway District 5, retired Wednesday after 37 years with the department, following a traditional walkout ceremony. The veteran motorcycle officer also tackled a burglar on the way out: the day before his retirement, his neighbor called reporting a break-in, and Bell confronted the suspect trying to flee. Bell joined the NYPD in 1989, became a sergeant in 1996 and a lieutenant in 2000, and later led the highway unit. His career included escorting four U.S. presidents—Donald Trump, Joe Biden, Barack Obama and George W. Bush—and Pope John Paul II during a 1995 visit to the five boroughs.