Brooklyn cop who suffered brain damage after teen dragged him in stolen car set to leave rehab

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

NYPD Officer Dalsh Veve and his wife Esther. Veve suffered brain damage after being dragged for several blocks by teen car thief. (Susan Watts/New York Daily News)

A Brooklyn police officer who suffered brain damage after being dragged for several blocks by a teenage car thief will be released from rehab on Monday, NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill said.

Officer Dalsh Veve, who has been recovering over the past year at the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation in New Jersey, began showing signs of improvement in January.

Two months ago, the nine-year veteran started recognizing people who were visiting him, police sources said.

O'Neill and cops from the 67th Precinct will join Veve's wife and 3-year-old daughter at the rehab center Monday to celebrate his release.

"This is a positive step in his recovery without a doubt," the NYPD commissioner said Sunday. "I couldn't be happier for his wife Esther and his daughter Darshee."

O'Neill credited the support from Veve's then-commanding officer, Joseph Gulotta, and the precinct's current commanding officer, Deputy Inspector Elliot Colon, as a big reason for the cop's speedy recovery.

NYPD commissioner James O’Neill (c.) will join Dalsh Veve’s wife and daughter at the rehab center Monday to celebrate his release. (Marc A. Hermann/for New York Daily News)

Veve, 36, was critically injured during a car stop in East Flatbush on June 3.

As the nine-year NYPD veteran questioned the people inside the stolen Honda Civic, driver Justin Murrell peeled off, dragging Veve over two blocks down Tilden Ave.

The officer fired his gun twice before he was finally thrown from the car when Murrell, 15, made a sharp right turn on E. 53rd St.

Murrell suffered a gunshot wound to his face and was later charged as an adult with attempted murder.

The teen had previously been arrested 11 times, including a grand larceny bust a month before, a burglary arrest in 2016 and three robbery collars in 2015.

Car thief Justin Murrell (c.),15, suffered a gunshot wound to his face in the incident and was later charged as an adult with attempted murder. (Kevin C Downs/For New York Daily News)

A day after the incident, Mayor Bill de Blasio praised Veve, a Haitian immigrant, as an example of the "American Dream."

Veve came to Brooklyn from Haiti with his mother when he was 12 years old, according to family.

The NYPD promoted the injured officer to detective in October.

Though he is being discharged, sources say Veve still has "a long way to go" in his recovery.

But O'Neill remained positive.

"He's going home. His wife (is) a nurse, and she said from day one she's going to take him home," he said. "This is a big thing."