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CORTLANDT, N.Y. - Westchester County Police charged two people with impersonating police officers and shaking down men for money in a prostitution-related scam.
Police said a woman posted ads on the Internet offering sex in exchange for cash. When two men showed up on separate occasions in Cortlandt to meet her, the woman and a male companion identified themselves as Westchester County police detectives and told the men they were under arrest.
The phony cops then allegedly offered not to proceed with the arrests or impound the mens vehicles in exchange for money. Both victims agreed to pay the pair more than $1,000 each and were escorted to ATMs by the alleged scammers, police said.
Shatai Dungie, 32, of Albany Post Road, Cortlandt Manor, and Nyrhande Thompson, 38, of Main Street, Peekskill were arrested over the weekend and charged in connection with the scam. They were each charged with first-degree criminal impersonation and fourth-degree grand larceny, both felonies.
Police began investigating the ads in July, after an anonymous tipster told Peekskill Police that a woman was arranging to meet men for sex, then robbing them. Once Peekskill Police realized that the activities were taking place in Cortlandt, county police were notified.
It took detectives months to track the pair down, as the online ads used to attract men and phone numbers used to arrange dates were frequently changed. There were also no pictures of the woman offering sex for money in the online ads.
Detectives from both agencies developed information about two men who were victims of the scam in recent months. One of the men told investigators he had agreed to meet the woman at a park in Cortlandt and the other said he met her at a motel. In both cases, the female posing as a prostitute and her male companion identified themselves as Westchester County police detectives and asked for cash to make the charges go away.
Public Safety Commissioner George N. Longworth praised detectives from the Westchester County and Peekskill police departments for their diligent work in identifying the perpetrators of the scam.
Although we realize it is an embarrassing situation, we are urging anyone else who was victimized in this way to contact the Westchester County Police, Longworth said. We believe that there may be more victims of this scam.
One victim paid $1,150 to the pair and the other $1,080, police said.
The investigation into Dungie and Thompson is continuing. Anyone with information can contact the Westchester County Police Tip Line at 1-877-220-3560. All calls are confidential. Tips are also accepted electronically at TIPS@WCCOPS.COM.
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