Act Of Kindness Goes Viral For NYPD Officer From Holbrook

An NYPD officer from Holbrook has made quite a splash on Facebook after an Arizona tourist posted a picture of him giving socks and boots to a barefooted homeless man near Times Square earlier this month.

The tourist, who is also a law enforcement agent in Arizona, was approaching the homeless man when the officer appeared and told the homeless man "I have these size 12 boots for you, they are all weather...Let's put them on and take care of you."

She didn't get the name of the officer, but posted this photograph of him kneeling down beside the barefooted man. The photo immediately went viral, and soon enough, the officer was identified as Larry DePrimo, of Holbrook.

The NYPD shared the photo on its Facebook page as well, and Newsday caught up with DePrimo for comment.

"I had two pairs of wool winter socks and combat boots and I was cold," DePrimo, 25, told Newsday about the chilly Nov. 14 night when he encountered the homeless man. DePrimo added that when he gave the boots to the man, he smiled from ear to ear. "It was like you gave him a million dollars," he said.

According to the article, the photo has been shared more than 47,000 times and has gathered more than 260,000 "likes." Additionally, the NYPD Facebook page has grown by 7,000 likes since the photo went up.