Pelham Manor Police Lt. Gregory Sancho has been named the department’s new chief, taking over from Thomas Atkins, who retired Friday after 39 years on the force, according to an email from the Village of Pelham Manor.

Sancho has been in the number two position at the department since August 2021. He started his law enforcement career in 2006 with the Maybrook Police Department in Orange County, joining the Pelham Manor force in the patrol division in 2009. He was assigned to the detective division in 2015 and was promoted in 2017 to detective sergeant.

“With more than fifteen years of service to the village, Chief Sancho has developed an in-depth understanding of our community,” said the Pelham Manor email. “Chief Sancho’s law enforcement competency and strong managerial skills position him well for the role of police chief, and we welcome him to this important position.”

Sancho is Pelham Manor’s fourth police chief in nine years. Atkins took over after former Chief Jeffrey Carpenter abruptly retired over Memorial Day weekend in 2021 while an independent investigator the village had hired was concluding interviews on a formal complaint made by a Pelham Manor police officer. The details of that investigation were never revealed. Carpenter got the top job when then Chief Alfred Mosiello retired in February 2015 over racist emails he shared with fellow officers.

The email said Village Manager Lindsey Luft and Sancho are working to fill the post of lieutenant: “We are proud to have a deep internal bench of qualified and competent candidates for the basis of our search, and the community will be kept apprised as to future developments.”