Celebrated, then disgraced and then partially redeemed, former Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik died at the age of 69.

“We’ve taken a tremendous loss, I think a lot of people will never be the same but I also believe this has made us a lot stronger,” Kerik said in 2001, reflecting in the aftermath of the horrific Sept. 11 terror attacks Kerik died on Thursday after battling an undisclosed illness.

“He was surrounded by his family. It was a real loss. As commissioner, he brought down crime and his commitment at the Department of Corrections, as commissioner there, we know this is the evolution of life, but it doesn’t take away the pain of losing someone that’s close,” Mayor Eric Adams told NY1 in an interview on Friday.

Kerik was the Department of Corrections commissioner, before his huge 2000 promotion: becoming the NYPD’s 40th police commissioner.

But Kerik gained national fame during 9/11.

“Those people are gonna be held accountable, we’re gonna make sure that they’re either brought to justice — or justice is brought to them,” Kerik said in 2001.

Alongside his longtime friend and benefactor, former Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

“Everyone in the city should remain calm. The very best thing to do right now would be to remain home. If you’re outside of southern Manhattan, you should remain where you are, you shouldn’t panic, you shouldn’t worry,” Giuliani said on 9/11.

Working as Giuliani’s bodyguard and driver during his 1993 mayoral campaign, Kerik’s loyalty transformed his career, leading to promotions and other opportunities.

“He grew up under very unfortunate circumstances. His mother, he believes, was a prostitute who was murdered. He dropped out of high school, he kind of grew up on the streets. And I think it was only Rudy Giuliani who kind of saved him,” said Andrew Kirtzman, a former reporter at NY1 who covered the Giuliani administration.

Another beat reporter described what New Yorkers still remember, when national tragedy struck.

“You would walk down the street and see people openly weeping everywhere. People were terrified that this was not the end of something, but the beginning of a new era. And they gave you reason to feel like this was going to be OK,” recalled Russ Buettner, a reporter for the New York Times.

Kerik’s success caught the eye of then-President George W. Bush, who nominated him in 2004 to head the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. But Kerik quickly withdrew his name.

“He had been given use of an apartment overlooking the World Trade Center site in order to aid in the recovery and have a place to rest, and he was using that also to have extramarital affairs with two women,” Buettner said.

“Then we did stories about his apartment renovations and other things that ultimately led to him being indicted,” he added.

In 2009, Kerik pleaded guilty to federal charges, including tax fraud, and served nearly four years in prison.

“He turned out to be a rogue. Someone who has broken the law left and right, had misused his position as police commissioner,” Kirtzman explained.

President Donald Trump later pardoned Kerik for his crimes in 2020.