NYPD lieutenant, head of Irish-American police group, suspended for drugs

An NYPD lieutenant and head of the department’s Irish-American police team has been suspended after failing a drug test, The Post has learned.

lieutenant det. Commander Kevin Byrnes failed a drug test on Wednesday, police sources said, which could be accidental or targeted. It’s unclear which drug triggered the test.

Byrnes, who joined the department in 1995, works for the Central Robbery Squad, where he has been assigned since 2019, NYPD records show.

He is also President of the Emerald Society of the NYPD.

He did not comment when contacted by phone on Thursday. His union also declined to comment.

Payroll records show that the lieutenant earned $216,015 in the last fiscal year.

The NYPD did not immediately respond to a request for comment.