The head of security for Kings County Hospital — hired after the shocking June 2008 death of a psychiatric patient who waited nearly 24 hours for help — was arrested last month for lying about his credentials, The Post has learned.
John Perfetto, 59, who supervised a staff of nearly 100 hospital cops, was fired Sept. 8 and arrested a week later on felony charges for claiming he had a Bachelor of Arts degree from John Jay College of Criminal Justice, a requirement he needed to get the job, according to sources and court records.
Perfetto was hired to the $86,528-a-year position Jan. 5, 2009, as part of a housecleaning purge meant to address allegations of patient abuse within the East Flatbush, Brooklyn, hospital’s psychiatric unit and KCH managerial failures, which were detailed in a civil-rights lawsuit filed by the US Justice Department.
The federal probe followed the June 19, 2008, death of Esmin Green, 49, who collapsed in KCH’s psychiatric emergency room after a 23-hour wait.
Perfetto — who declined comment outside his Norwood, NJ, home — oversaw the hospital cops who guard prisoners, watch over drug supplies and medical equipment, and protect the safety of patients and staff in the sprawling facility.
Additional reporting Perry Chiaramonte
