"Detective Mary Mae Foley was more than just a part of the Masher Squad that took down men who abused women. She was a Nazi hunter who stopped fascist infiltrators before World War II, and was instrumental in the criminal investigation of notorious gangster Charles Lucky Luciano. But to her grandson, Bob Carr, she was just Nana. She was a tough woman, you know, she didn't take any guff, Carr said."
"She began her journey in the NYPD in 1923 and cuffed predatory men who assaulted women. She rose through the ranks, becoming a homicide detective and even took on Nazi sympathizers known as the German American Bund an organization affiliated with Nazi Germany that sought to popularize Adolf Hitler in America before the US entered the war following the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941."
"If that was not enough of a resume, Foley also investigated infamous mobster Lucky Luciano and worked to protect witnesses in the criminal case against him. Detective Mary Mae Foley.Photo courtesy of NYPD Robert Carr surrounded by family.Photo by Dean Moses Mounted police officers look at the new street sign.Photo by Ramy Mahmoud These exploits were detailed in the book The Girls Who Fought Crime by Mari K. Eder, a major general. Eder researched Foley's life, poring over documents and interviewing family members."
A street was renamed to honor Detective Mary Mae Foley for her pioneering policing in Queens. She joined the NYPD in 1923 and served on the Masher Squad targeting men who abused women, rising to homicide detective. She pursued Nazi sympathizers linked to the German American Bund before World War II and investigated mobster Lucky Luciano while protecting witnesses. Family members remembered her as a tough, loving grandmother. Photographs and community members marked the ceremony honoring her career and legacy in law enforcement.
Read at www.amny.com
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