I Was an NYPD Cop for 24 Years — Here's How We Took Down NYC's Most Dangerous Gangs | Michael Lau
November 4, 2026
AI Summary
5 min readAt age 11, Michael Lau watched a man hold a knife to his mother and two younger brothers in a housing project elevator in New York City. His mother handed over the $20 she had. The man fled down the stairs. That night, Lau decided he would become a cop — even though he had never seen a Chinese policeman, even though a Cantonese saying held that "good sons don't become cops." He joined the NYPD in 1986 and spent 24 years on the force, rising from patrol in Harlem to deputy inspector, taking down the Chinese gangs that had controlled Chinatown's streets for decades.
Growing Up in the Crossfire
Lau's family immigrated from Hong Kong when he was five, settling first in Alphabet City and later in public housing on the outskirts of Chinatown. His father was robbed several times and assaulted with a bottle. His mother worked as a seamstress in a sweatshop, paid by the piece, not the hour. By the time Lau was a teenager, every street in Chinatown was controlled by a youth gang — the Flying Dragons on Pell Street, the Ghost Shadows on Mott. To get to his job at Baskin Robbins, he would check the block first; if gang members were out, he took a longer route. "I can't even fucking walk in Chinatown," he remembers thinking. "That just reinforced, maybe I can do something."
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What you'll learn
- 1 (02:23) **"89 Members of the Flying Dragons Try to Kill Me"** - Michael Lau, a 24-year NYPD veteran, introduces his background and the episode's focus on taking down NYC's most dangerous Chinese gangs.
- 2 (04:42) **The Robbery That Made Him a Cop** - Lau details the pivotal childhood trauma that drove him to join the NYPD at age 11.
- 3 (11:49) **The Gauntlet of Chinatown's Gangs** - Lau describes the terrifying reality of growing up in a neighborhood where every street was controlled by a different gang.
- 4 (13:33) **Being a Chinese Cop in the 1980s** - Lau discusses the challenges of being part of less than 1% of the NYPD that was Asian.
- 5 (16:30) **Breaking the Wall of Silence** - Lau explains how he began dismantling the gang's power by making public arrests and using RICO statutes.
- 6 (22:34) **The Tragic Cycle of Youth Gangs** - Lau shares a heartbreaking story about a 14-year-old gang member he tried to save.
- 7 (29:39) **The Structure of Chinese Organized Crime** - Lau breaks down the hierarchy of Chinatown's criminal underworld.
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Show Notes
Michael Lau spent 24 years with the NYPD, rising from rookie cop to Deputy Inspector. An immigrant from Hong Kong who grew up surrounded by gang violence in Chinatown, he went on to patrol some of NYC's toughest neighborhoods, including Chinatown and Harlem. Michael shares wild stories of taking down dangerous gang members, making arrests, confronting organized crime, and climbing the ranks to become an NYPD commander.
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Hosted, Executive Produced & Edited By Ian Bick:
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Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction: Cop vs. Flying Dragons
00:33 Early Life and Immigration
01:28 Childhood in Alphabet City
02:21 Move to Rucker Housing
02:53 Mother Robbed at Knife Point
06:28 Decision to Become a Cop
07:12 Joining the NYPD
08:30 Chinatown Gangs and First Jobs
11:04 Police Academy and Harlem
12:03 Return to Chinatown
13:15 Combating Gang Extortion
15:03 Plainclothes and Undercover Work
16:54 First Arrest and Helping Others
18:23 Tragic Story of a Gang Member
25:39 Structure of Chinatown Gangs
28:05 Working with Informants
30:00 Promotions and Politics in NYPD
32:41 Plainclothes Stories and JFK Jr.
36:32 Threats and Shootout with Flying Dragons
45:03 RICO Cases and Dismantling Gangs
48:03 Extortion and Community Impact
50:35 Heartbreaking Notification
55:45 Becoming Sergeant
57:38 Quotas and Leadership
01:01:55 Chinatown Rapist Task Force
01:02:58 Cultural Crimes and Scams
01:04:52 Gambling, Prostitution, and Modern Crime
01:07:25 Gambling Raids and Undercover Ops
01:08:27 Lieutenant: Queens Gang Squad
01:12:07 Gang Cases and RICO Investigations
01:15:11 Encounters with Former Criminals
01:18:03 Retirement and Vice Enforcement
01:20:52 Captain: Community Affairs
01:27:52 Deputy Inspector: Commanding Officer
01:31:00 Chinatown Parking and Politics
01:33:03 Leave of Absence and Return
01:36:00 Vice and Search Warrants
01:37:11 Shooting on East Broadway
01:41:16 Corruption and Internal Affairs
01:46:40 Types of IAB Officers
01:49:21 Petty Investigations and Integrity Tests
01:50:38 Steven Lee Case Discussion
01:53:03 Retirement and Life After NYPD
01:56:33 Policing Today and Public Perception
02:01:19 Police Presence and Deterrence
02:04:36 Final Reflections and Book Announcement
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