Former Yonkers Police Commissioner John Mueller was appointed chief of police for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA).
Mueller comes to the MTA following 28 years of service at the Yonkers Police Department. Mueller will oversee the more than the 1,000-member MTA Police Department that is responsible for patrolling and securing the MTA’s operating region that stretches from Montauk to Poughkeepsie.
“Yonkers is the second largest city in the MTA region, and the chief understands many of the same issues we are facing,” said MTA Chair and CEO Janno Lieber. “His experience in leading and developing police operations, and his ability to effect positive change was what made him such a strong candidate.”
Mueller began his law enforcement career in 1992 with the NYPD, joining Yonkers PD in 1994 as an officer in the 4th Precinct. Mueller rose the ranks over the years, leading up to his 2019 appointment as police commissioner. Among his credentials during his recent 10 years at Yonkers PD, the city of Yonkers saw a 45 percent reduction in crime through a hyper focused, precision policing philosophy. This reduction has been credited to focused community engagement by officers, a program Mueller pushed during his time as the commanding officer of the 4th Precinct.
“John Mueller is everything the MTA needs to lead a growing police force that riders depend on to keep our transportation system safe,” said MTA Chief Safety Officer Patrick Warren. “John’s experience in leading and developing police operations, and ability to effect positive change, was what made him such a strong candidate. In his time at Yonkers PD, he understood the importance of community collaboration that built trust and helped reduce crime nearly in half in the third largest city in the state.”
MTA says Chief Mueller brings with him a passion to improve the quality of life and safety to MTA riders as exemplified in volunteer activities that support a variety of civic organizations, including the Pleasantville Strong, a substance abuse prevention program for adolescents that he founded. He is also a co-founder of the Yonkers Police – Fire Toughman Competition in 2000, a charity boxing competition that has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years.
“I am honored and excited to be joining the officers of the MTA Police Department whose outstanding reputation is well known,” said Mueller. “Together we will demonstrate the skills and professionalism, listening to our riders concerns and addressing those concerns, as we strive to make the MTA system the safest transit system in the country.”
Born and raised in Yonkers, Mueller holds a graduate degree from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City, has attended the Police Executive Research Forum, the United States Naval Postgraduate School's Center for Defense and Homeland Security and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy. He has been married to his wife Donna for 28 years. The couple has three sons: Jack, Sean and Shane.
