WOODLAND, Calif. - A seventh woman is alleging she was sexually assaulted by a West Sacramento police officer while he was on duty.
The Sacramento Bee reports the 30-year-old woman has filed a federal lawsuit accusing Sergio Alvarez of forced copulation and sodomy during two separate attacks between May and September of last year.
The suit declares that Alvarez engaged in "sexually predatory conduct." The officer's attorney declined to comment Monday.
In March Alvarez entered not guilty pleas to 35 counts including rape, sodomy, oral copulation and kidnapping.
The 38-year-old Alvarez is accused of assaulting the six other women after stopping them late at night or early in the morning while on patrol between October 2011 and September 2012.
A five-month investigation began after a woman reported to another officer that she had been sexually assaulted by a uniformed policeman.
U.S. Charges 18 Sheriff’s Officers in Inquiry Into Misconduct at Los Angeles Jails
LOS ANGELES — Federal prosecutors on Monday charged 18 current and former members of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department with excessive use of force and obstruction of justice as part of a sprawling investigation into allegations of misconduct and abuse of inmates in county jails, federal law enforcement officials said.
All but two of the officers, including two lieutenants, were arrested on Monday; the two deputies who were not arrested were apparently traveling, prosecutors said.
The officers all worked in the county’s jails in downtown Los Angeles.
The county’s jail system — the largest in the country and, according to many inmate advocates, the most troubled — has been under intense federal scrutiny for more than two years after a string of lawsuits accused deputies of abusing inmates.
One of four indictments returned Monday named seven officers who were supposed to monitor internal affairs. In the indictment, federal officials charged that two lieutenants tried to hide an inmate after they discovered that he was acting as an informant for the F.B.I.'s investigation.
The inmate had obtained a cellphone after one deputy at the jail accepted a bribe from an undercover federal agent, according to the indictment. The officers changed records to make it seem as if the inmate had been released, then rebooked him using a different name; one officer told the informant that he had been abandoned by federal investigators, prosecutors charge.
Two deputies then tried to obtain a court order from a county judge to get information about the federal investigation; when the judge denied the request, two sergeants from the sheriff’s department confronted an F.B.I. agent at home, threatening her with arrest, the indictment said.
“These incidents did not take place in a vacuum,” André Birotte Jr., the United States attorney for Los Angeles, said Monday in announcing the charges at a news conference.
“Certain behavior had become institutionalized, and a group of officers considered themselves to be above the law,” he said. “Instead of ensuring the law is defended, they are accused of taking steps to prevent that.”
The allegations come at a particularly difficult time for Sheriff Lee Baca, who is facing several challengers in his campaign for re-election next year. Sheriff Baca has repeatedly said that he responded to all charges of misconduct as soon as he was aware of them, but critics like the American Civil Liberties Union say that he willfully ignored persistent problems.
Sheriff Baca said Monday that the department had cooperated fully with the investigation, and he defended the county jails as the “safest jails in the United States.”
“We do not tolerate misconduct by any deputies,” he said.
Sheriff Baca said 14 or 15 of the officers charged were still with the department and would be placed on unpaid leave. “My employees, 99.9 percent of them, also do outstanding work.”
The two lieutenants assigned to oversee internal problems who were indicted Monday were identified as Gregory Thompson, in charge of the Operation Safe Jails Program and the jail investigations unit, and Stephen Leavins, of the Internal Criminal Investigations Bureau, which investigates allegations of crimes by sheriff’s officials. Both men were charged with conspiracy and obstruction of justice.
Sheriff Baca refused to say whether he knew about their actions at the time described in the indictment or whether he had been interviewed by the grand jury.
The indictment lists several cases in which visitors were taken to a break room meant for deputies at the jail and beaten. One man visiting his brother in 2011 had his arm broken and shoulder dislocated and was locked up for five days without justification, Mr. Birotte said. The man, who was not named in the indictment, now has a permanent disability, officials said.
The indictment also charges Sergeant Eric Gonzalez, who supervised the visitor center but no longer works for the department, along with four deputies who reported to him; each participated in at least one beating, according to the court documents. Mr. Gonzalez was accused of scolding deputies who did not use force against visitors who “disrespected” sheriffs.
In June 2011, according to the indictment, the husband of the Austrian consul general was arrested near the entrance to the visitor center. When the diplomat later asked to speak to a supervisor about her husband’s arrest, she was also arrested, although she was not charged.
Uplands Park officer charged in assault, robbery of motorcycle club member
ST. LOUIS • Lamont "Puff" Aikens, a former Uplands Park police officer involved in a pursuit that killed an innocent driver in 2009 and led to a $3 million settlement, has been charged in an attack on a rival motorcycle club member.
St. Louis prosecutors charged Aikens, 38, of the 4700 block of Lexington Avenue, on Dec. 5 with first-degree robbery and assault.
Police said Aikens, a member of the Hell's Lovers motorcycle club, beat and robbed a member of another group about 11:30 p.m. Nov. 30 during a charity event at the Masonic Lodge in the 4500 block of Olive Street.
Aikens and another man, Thomas "Guardrail" Viehman, 53, repeatedly punched and kicked the 47-year-old man until he was unconscious, and took his wallet and phone, officials allege.
Prosecutors charged Viehman, of the 800 block of Peppers Corner Road in Silex, Mo., with robbery and assault. Police said Viehman is the president of the Chicago-based Hell's Lovers.
The victim told police that Aikens and Viehman argued with him after he escorted a female club member to the restroom.
Aikens has prior felonies including possession of a controlled substance and felonious restraint, officials said.
He was serving as an auxiliary officer in Uplands Park when he chased a speeding car into St. Louis on Dec. 3, 2009. It crashed into another vehicle, killing Lashanna Snipes, a 34-year-old mother of four who was heading to a family member's house to hang Christmas lights.
and a $3 million settlement,
Prosecutors charged Aikens with holding the commission of a police officer without a valid license, but Circuit Judge Dennis Smith aquitted Aikens of the crime in May.
In June 2012, a St. Louis jury returned a $3.1 million verdict against Uplands Park for Snipes’ death. She had been driving her sister, two children and a grandnephew when they were struck by the fleeing car.
The plaintiffs’ attorneys said the department hired Aikens about two months earlier, knowing he had a history of 18 arrests — including two felonies.
Derion Henderson, who chose to flee after being clocked at 46 mph in a 30 zone, is serving 17 years for second-degree murder and vehicle tampering.
St. Louis prosecutors charged Aikens, 38, of the 4700 block of Lexington Avenue, on Dec. 5 with first-degree robbery and assault.
Police said Aikens, a member of the Hell's Lovers motorcycle club, beat and robbed a member of another group about 11:30 p.m. Nov. 30 during a charity event at the Masonic Lodge in the 4500 block of Olive Street.
Aikens and another man, Thomas "Guardrail" Viehman, 53, repeatedly punched and kicked the 47-year-old man until he was unconscious, and took his wallet and phone, officials allege.
The victim told police that Aikens and Viehman argued with him after he escorted a female club member to the restroom.
Aikens has prior felonies including possession of a controlled substance and felonious restraint, officials said.
He was serving as an auxiliary officer in Uplands Park when he chased a speeding car into St. Louis on Dec. 3, 2009. It crashed into another vehicle, killing Lashanna Snipes, a 34-year-old mother of four who was heading to a family member's house to hang Christmas lights.
and a $3 million settlement,
Prosecutors charged Aikens with holding the commission of a police officer without a valid license, but Circuit Judge Dennis Smith aquitted Aikens of the crime in May.
In June 2012, a St. Louis jury returned a $3.1 million verdict against Uplands Park for Snipes’ death. She had been driving her sister, two children and a grandnephew when they were struck by the fleeing car.
The plaintiffs’ attorneys said the department hired Aikens about two months earlier, knowing he had a history of 18 arrests — including two felonies.
Derion Henderson, who chose to flee after being clocked at 46 mph in a 30 zone, is serving 17 years for second-degree murder and vehicle tampering.
Officer charged with domestic violence
CARROLL TOWNSHIP — A Carroll Township police officer was arrested Sunday morning and charged with domestic violence after a woman called 9-1-1 and whispered that she needed help.
William Windnagel, 56, was charged with one count of domestic violence, a first-degree misdemeanor.
When officers arrived at a residence in the 7500 block of West Salem Carroll Road moments after the call came in, a woman came running out, according to the report.
During the investigation, according to the report, Windnagel refused to answer questions, and the woman expressed fear that she was going to be killed by Windnagel.
She told officers the two had gotten into an argument and that he refused to allow her to leave the house and forcefully held her on a sofa, the report says.
After Windnagel was arrested, the report says, investigators obtained search warrants for the West Salem Carroll Road property and vehicles located on the property and for a garage at a Titus Road location in Carroll Township.
Information about the search warrants was not made available since the matter is an open investigation, separate from the domestic violence incident, the spokesman said.
Carroll Township police Chief Jody Hatfield asked the OCSO to handle the matter, since Windnagel is employed by Carroll Township.
He is employed on a part-time basis according to an Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office report.
Windnagel retired from the OCSO about five years ago, according to a department spokesman.
Hatfield said Windnagel is on unpaid administrative leave until a departmental hearing can be held.
He was released from the Ottawa County Detention Facility on Monday after making an initial appearance in Ottawa County Municipal Court, a jail spokeswoman said.
Windnagel’s bail was set at $8,025, she said, and he is scheduled to appear in court again on Dec. 11
William Windnagel, 56, was charged with one count of domestic violence, a first-degree misdemeanor.
When officers arrived at a residence in the 7500 block of West Salem Carroll Road moments after the call came in, a woman came running out, according to the report.
During the investigation, according to the report, Windnagel refused to answer questions, and the woman expressed fear that she was going to be killed by Windnagel.
She told officers the two had gotten into an argument and that he refused to allow her to leave the house and forcefully held her on a sofa, the report says.
After Windnagel was arrested, the report says, investigators obtained search warrants for the West Salem Carroll Road property and vehicles located on the property and for a garage at a Titus Road location in Carroll Township.
Information about the search warrants was not made available since the matter is an open investigation, separate from the domestic violence incident, the spokesman said.
Carroll Township police Chief Jody Hatfield asked the OCSO to handle the matter, since Windnagel is employed by Carroll Township.
He is employed on a part-time basis according to an Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office report.
Windnagel retired from the OCSO about five years ago, according to a department spokesman.
Hatfield said Windnagel is on unpaid administrative leave until a departmental hearing can be held.
He was released from the Ottawa County Detention Facility on Monday after making an initial appearance in Ottawa County Municipal Court, a jail spokeswoman said.
Windnagel’s bail was set at $8,025, she said, and he is scheduled to appear in court again on Dec. 11
New Mexico officer fired in van shooting to appeal
Lawyers for a New Mexico State Police officer who
fired shots at a minivan full of children during a chaotic October traffic stop
in Taos said he plans to appeal his firing.
Attorneys for Elias Montoya said Sunday they were
reviewing the allegations against the veteran officer and intend to claim he
was wrongfully terminated.
"One of the most dangerous situations is a traffic stop on a
rural road with limited radio access," attorney Antonia Roybal-Mack said
in the statement. "It is difficult to second-guess the actions of Officer
Montoya without completely reviewing all of the evidence."
No one was hurt in the shooting that occurred while five children
were in the minivan.
Under department policy, Montoya has 30 days to appeal his firing
to the Public Safety Advisory Commission, which is made up of civilians
appointed by the governor.
Gov. Susana Martinez said Monday she supported the decision by New
Mexico State Police Chief Pete Kassetas to fire Montoya.
"You don't use deadly force against someone who is not threatening
you with deadly force," said Martinez, a former district attorney whose
husband is a retired law enforcement officer.
The governor said she reviewed video from a police cruiser's
dashboard camera taken during the Oct. 28 traffic stop that showed Montoya
shooting at the minivan as Oriana Farrell of Memphis, Tenn., drove away from a
traffic stop after an officer knocked out her van's window with a baton.
The 39-year-old motorist had been stopped by another State Police
officer for speeding. Authorities said she fled twice after that officer tried
to give her a ticket and then arrest her.
After a chase that reached speeds of nearly 100 mph, Farrell and
her teenage son were arrested in front of a Taos hotel. Farrell was released on
bond and faces charges of child abuse, fleeing and misdemeanor possession of
drug paraphernalia for a pair of marijuana pipes that authorities say were in
the van.
According to a police report, Montoya later bought the entire
family food from McDonald's during the booking process.
Montoya was fired Friday, following an internal investigation and
a disciplinary hearing.
Still, several dozen people braved freezing temperatures on Sunday
to march through the northern New Mexico community with handmade cardboard
signs.
"We support him because of who he is and what he is to this
community," Taos resident Ray Martinez told KRQE (http://bit.ly/1bqOsHT).
Ray Martinez and other supporters said Montoya, who had worked for
the department for 12 years, should get his job back, and Farrell should take
most of the blame for endangering her children and others as she sped through
the town.
Montoya's attorneys said their client was thankful for the
support.
Others in Taos have complained that excessive force was used
during the stop. Members of the group Citizens for Social Justice plan to meet
with Kassetas this week to discuss the incident.
Bumbling cop gets tasered, shoots disturbed man: lawsuit
Cops
fired 10 bullets at an emotionally disturbed man because a confused officer
screamed out he was being stabbed — when he’d accidentally been Tasered by a
colleague, an explosive new lawsuit charges.
Police
are claiming the officers who responded to Mohamed Bah’s Harlem apartment in
2012 opened fire — fatally hitting him with eight bullets — because he was
lunging at them with a knife.
When
they entered the dimly lit apartment, cops tried to subdue the African
immigrant with Tasers and guns firing rubber pellets.
Officer
Joseph McCormack fired his stun gun, striking Officer Edwin Mateo “from
behind,’’ according to Bah family lawyer Randolph M. McLaughlin, of the law
firm Newman Ferrara.
Mateo,
who’d recently returned from a National Guard tour in Afghanistan, yelled,
“He’s stabbing me. Shoot him,’’ according to the $70 million lawsuit, which is
being filed Monday in Manhattan federal court.
The
lawsuit also claims the 28-year-old Guinean was still alive, although barely,
after being shot – but then was callously “dragged” by authorities through the
building’s hallways, leaving a trial of “smeared” blood.
“First
they shoot the man and treat him like a criminal – and then they drag him down
the hallway like an animal,” said McLaughlin.
“Perhaps
he’d still be alive if they just picked him up.
“This
kind of behavior shocks the conscience and should not be tolerated on a
civilized police force.’’
Two
weeks ago, a grand jury empanelled by Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance found the cops —
who had responded to a 911 call by Bah’s mother seeking medical help for her
son — were justified in using deadly force and shouldn’t face criminal charges.
The
Bah family’s lawsuit, which adds the new allegations to previously filed legal
papers, relies on eyewitness accounts, police reports and other official
documents, McLaughlin said.
It
quotes Bah’s mother saying her son was still alive, if barely, when emergency
responders tried reviving him outside the building.
He
died soon afterward at a local hospital.
The
lawsuit names as defendants the city, the NYPD, and the three cops who it’s
believed fired the fatal shots: Mateo, Andrew Kress and Michael Green.
Bah’s
mom says she called 911 not expecting armed cops brandishing tactical gear to
show up.
She
says she only wanted medics to treat her son, who suffered from depression.
McLaughlin
said there’s another bizarre angle to the case.
The
city probably won’t be able to introduce into evidence the knife cops claim his
client was using to fight off the officers.
McLaughlin
said he was told it mysteriously disappeared from a flooded police warehouse
during Superstorm Sandy.
The
NYPD — which is still conducting its own internal probe — referred questions to
the city’s Law Department.
A
Law Department spokesman said: “The case involves tragic circumstances,’’ and
officials will “evaluate the matter thoroughly.’’
New York City Police Officer and Criminal Associates Charged with Extorting Queens Restauranteur
Defendants Collected $24,000 of “Protection” Money During a Five-Month Period
|
U.S.
Attorney’s OfficeDecember 03, 2013
|
·
Eastern District of New York(718) 254-7000
|
A three-count indictment was unsealed today in federal court in
Brooklyn, New York, charging Redinel Dervishaj, Besnik Llakatura, and Denis
Nikolla with Hobbs Act extortion conspiracy, attempted Hobbs Act extortion, and
brandishing a firearm in relation to the extortion. The charges arose from the
defendants’ extortion of money from a Queens County restaurant owner. Llakatura
was at the time of the alleged offenses a police officer with the New York City
Police Department (NYPD), assigned to the 120th Precinct in Staten Island, New
York. He was suspended without pay upon his arrest. The defendants are
scheduled to be arraigned this afternoon at the United States District Court
for the Eastern District of New York before United States Magistrate Judge Joan
Azrack.
The charges were announced by Loretta E. Lynch, United States
Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; George Venizelos, Assistant
Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office
(FBI); and Raymond W. Kelly, Commissioner, NYPD.
“The defendants told their victims they offered 'protection,' but
in reality, they peddled fear and intimidation through the Albanian
community—their community—of Queens,” stated United States Attorney Lynch.
“When one victim turned to law enforcement for help, he was betrayed again by a
corrupt officer on the take, who turned his back on his badge, his oath, and
his friend in exchange for extortion money in his pocket.” Ms. Lynch expressed
her thanks to members of the Joint Organized Crime Task Force, which includes agents
of the FBI and detectives of the NYPD, which led the investigation, as well as
the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Division for its cooperation and assistance in the
investigation.
“By creating a climate of fear, the defendants allegedly coerced
an innocent restaurant owner into paying for so-called protective services. The
victim was further betrayed when seeking the assistance of Besnik Llakatura, an
NYPD officer whose sinister intentions were shrouded by his badge of honor. But
Llakatura didn’t serve his community with honor; he, instead, abused his powers
to the detriment of the public trust. He remains an exception to those law
enforcement officers who work selflessly to weed out crime and corruption in
their communities,” stated FBI Assistant Director in Charge Venizelos.
“Llakatura is alleged to have exploited his friendship and shared
heritage in order to help the defendants extort a restaurateur. Once it was
reported, the NYPD Internal Affairs Bureau and the Department’s Organized Crime
Investigations Division thoroughly responded, resulting in the charges being
announced today,” Commissioner Kelly said.
According to the indictment and court filings, Dervishaj,
Llakatura, and Nikolla demanded monthly payments from a Queens restaurant owner
in exchange for “protection,” repeatedly using threats and intimidation to
ensure his compliance. The scheme began shortly after the victim opened a
restaurant in Astoria when he was visited by Dervishaj and told that he had
opened a business in “our neighborhood” and, as a result, “you have to pay us.”
The restaurant owner, who understood that he was targeted because he, like the
defendants, is of Albanian descent, sought help from his friend Llakatura.
Unbeknownst to him, Llakatura, an NYPD officer on Staten Island since 2006, was
conspiring with Dervishaj in the extortion. Llakatura discouraged the
restaurant owner from going to the police and sought to leverage his position
to persuade the victim that he had no choice but to make the demanded payments.
When the victim resisted, he was threatened with physical violence and chased
at gunpoint down the street in Queens by Nikolla.
Court-authorized wiretaps of the defendants’ telephones uncovered
detailed evidence of their efforts to maintain control over businesses in the
neighborhood through fear, intimidation, and violence. In one intercepted call,
Llakatura joked about how he “taxes” local businesses. In another, Nikolla
described to Dervishaj how he had grabbed another victim “by the neck” because
he had told Nikolla that he only had $2,000 and could not pay more. (The
referenced language from the intercepted calls is based on draft translations
from Albanian.)
Over the course of five months, each of the three defendants took
turns collecting monthly payments from the Astoria restaurant owner, ultimately
collecting $24,000 in so-called protection money.
The charges announced today are merely allegations, and the
defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United
States Attorneys Nadia Shihata and M. Kristin Mace.
Defendants:
Redinel Dervishaj, a/k/a “Redi”
Age: 37
Queens, New York
Age: 37
Queens, New York
Besnik Llakatura, a/k/a “Besi” and “Nick”
Age: 34
Staten Island, New York
Age: 34
Staten Island, New York
Denis Nikolla
Age: 33
Brooklyn, New York
Age: 33
Brooklyn, New York
Ranking Midlothian Police Officer Charged with Federal Civil Rights Violations Involving Alleged Use of Excessive Force
|
U.S.
Attorney’s Office December 04, 2013
|
|
CHICAGO―A
south suburban Midlothian Police officer was indicted on federal civil rights
charges alleging that he used excessive force against two different victims in
separate beating incidents in 2010 and 2011. The defendant, Steven G. Zamiar,
was indicted on two counts of violating the victims’ civil right to be free
from the use of unreasonable force by a law enforcement officer. The two-count
indictment was returned by a federal grand jury yesterday and was announced
today by Zachary T. Fardon, United States Attorney for the Northern District of
Illinois, and Robert J. Holley, Special Agent in Charge of the Chicago Office
of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Zamiar,
46, of Midlothian, joined the Midlothian Police Department in 2000. He was a
detective sergeant at the time of the alleged beating in 2010 and was deputy
chief when the alleged beating occurred in 2011. He was later demoted to
lieutenant and was placed on paid administrative leave this past September. He
will be arraigned on a date yet to be scheduled in U.S. District Court.
According
to the indictment, on September 6, 2010, when he was a detective sergeant,
Zamiar used excessive force, resulting in bodily injury, against Victim A. On
November 24, 2011, when he was deputy chief of the Midlothian Police
Department, Zamiar allegedly used excessive force, resulting in bodily injury,
against Victim B. During the November 2011 incident, Zamiar allegedly used,
attempted to use, and threatened to use a dangerous weapon.
Each
count carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. If
convicted, the court must impose a reasonable sentence under federal statutes
and the advisory United States Sentencing Guidelines.
The
government is being represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Otlewski.
An
indictment contains merely charges and is not evidence of guilt. The defendant
is presumed innocent and is entitled to a fair trial at which the government
has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.