Two top city Correction bosses are leaving the department amid a “major shakeup” by new Commissioner Joseph Ponte — who is under fire following a rash of assaults at Rikers Island, sources said Friday.
The drastic measures were taken as The Post reported that a high-ranking Bloods gang member had a “hit list” of Rikers staff that were marked for violent assault.
A Correction spokesman confirmed Friday that Chief of Department Evelyn Maribal and First Deputy Commissioner Mark Cranston were on their way out.
Several other commanders were demoted or forced to retire following a string of embarrassing events.
“With all the bad things that have happened — the news hasn’t been good out of Rikers — this is what they are doing,” a jailhouse source said.
“They want to get rid of people who were there when all those bad things started happening. Like when the man died after swallowing a ball of soap and a prisoner baked to death.”
A Correction spokesman said Cranston — who served as acting commissioner before Mayor de Blasio appointed Ponte — left to work for the Middlesex County, NJ, prison system.
The spokesman said Mirabal is retiring after 34 years of service.
A source said Cranston was unhappy he was passed over by de Blasio for the top job.
But a DOC spokesman said it’s a “natural process” for a new commissioner to take a fresh look at staff, and “be given the discretion to formulate his team, as well as make adjustments as to operations and policies.”
The sweeping changes have guards worried that Ponte — who has been criticized for being too soft on inmates — will just replace the old guards with “hug-a-thug” types.
“I’m hoping that with all these ousters that he’s not bringing in like-minded people because it will go from bad to worse,” said a Rikers staffer. “The people we work with are highly dangerous people and you cannot think that you are somehow going to transform them by showing them kindness.”
The hand-written Bloods “hit list” was confiscated from a Rikers cell and has the headings “Blood-Roster” and “Top 10” and says the attacks are “to start May 1.”
Sources said the list is further proof Ponte is not qualified to run the city jails.
“The mayor has this very progressive liberal-minded view as to what happens inside prisons, so he gets this guy from Maine who I think is unqualified to handle Rikers, which is a very heavy-duty prison,” said a Rikers source.