$1.7M COVID-19 Fraud Scheme: Westchester Daughter, Mom Who Worked For Police Sentenced $1.7M COVID-19 Fraud Scheme: Westchester Daughter, Mom Who Worked For Police Sentenced
$1.7M Covid-19 Fraud Scheme: Westchester Daughter, Mom Who Worked For Police Sentenced A mother-daughter duo has been sentenced to prison for defrauding the government of approximately $1.7 million.  Westchester County residents Alicia Ayers and her mother, Andrea Ayers, both of Mount Vernon, were found guilty of submitting more than 300 fraudulent applications for US Small Business Administration Economic Injury Disaster Loans.  Andrea Ayers was a former Code Enforcement Officer for the City of Mount Vernon Police Department. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress expanded the SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) Program to provide low-interest …
Man Captures Images Of Young Girls With Hidden Cameras At Hudson Valley Park: Feds Man Captures Images Of Young Girls With Hidden Cameras At Hudson Valley Park: Feds
Man Captures Images Of Young Girls With Hidden Cameras At Hudson Valley Park: Feds A 54-year-old man faces child pornography possession charges after placing hidden cameras in the bathroom of a public park in the Hudson Valley to capture images of young girls, officials announced. Putnam County resident John Towers of Mahopac was arrested on Thursday, April 18 on child pornography charges, the US Attorney's Office of the Southern District of New York announced.  According to federal officials, from July 24, 2018, to December 9, 2019, Towers put hidden cameras in the bathroom of a privately owned public park in Putnam County to secretly record sexually explicit images…
NY Man Known As 'Sal The Shoemaker' Admits Running Illegal Gambling Operation For Mafia NY Man Known As 'Sal The Shoemaker' Admits Running Illegal Gambling Operation For Mafia
NY Man Known As 'Sal The Shoemaker' Admits Running Illegal Gambling Operation For Mafia An associate of the Genovese organized crime family known as “Sal the Shoemaker” admitted to operating an illegal gambling business associated with La Cosa Nostra. Long Island resident Salvatore Rubino, age 60, of Bethpage, pleaded guilty on Tuesday, April 16, at federal court in Brooklyn to operating the business. Earlier this month, four co-defendant members and associates of the Genovese crime family admitted to various felony charges stemming from their long-running operation of several lucrative gambling operations in New York City. Of the five charged, four are from Long Isl…
Convicted Sex Offender Coerces Hudson Valley Girl To Send Him Explicit Photos, Videos: Feds Convicted Sex Offender Coerces Hudson Valley Girl To Send Him Explicit Photos, Videos: Feds
Convicted Sex Offender Coerces Hudson Valley Girl To Send Him Explicit Photos, Videos: Feds A convicted sex offender was deported from Mexico and brought back to the United States to face charges in connection with his alleged sexual exploitation of a 12-year-old Hudson Valley girl, federal officials said. Former Oregon resident Kennedy Carter, age 27, was deported from Mexico and presented in San Francisco federal court after allegedly coercing a 12-year-old Putnam County girl into sending him sexually explicit photos and videos over the internet, the US Attorney's Office for Southern District of New York announced on Friday, March 22.  According to federal officials, b…
Duo Nabbed After Burglarizing Harrison Residence: Police Duo Nabbed After Burglarizing Harrison Residence: Police
Duo Nabbed After Burglarizing Harrison Residence: Police A man and woman were both extradited to New York after breaking into a home in Westchester and stealing property, police announced.  Stefania Gonzalez-Munoz, age 35, and Nicolas Sanchez-Diaz, age 22, were both arrested in connection to a burglary that occurred in Harrison in December 2023, Harrison Police announced on Friday, March 22.  According to the department, at the time of the burglary, a downtown Harrison resident told police that their home had been broken into and that their property had been stolen. Authorities then began an investigation and eventually filed arres…
New Update: 5 Charged In Double-Fatal Armed Robbery In Westchester New Update: 5 Charged In Double-Fatal Armed Robbery In Westchester
New Update: 5 Charged In Double-Fatal Armed Robbery In Westchester Five men have been charged in connection with a violent shootout at a Westchester warehouse that left both an employee and a member of a robbery crew dead, federal officials announced. New, updated report - Latest Update: $15K Reward Offered For Info On Suspect In Double-Fatal Shooting In Mount Vernon The five defendants were arrested following an attempted gunpoint robbery of a warehouse in Mount Vernon in the area of 137 South Fifth Ave. that sells unlicensed marijuana and nicotine products to smoke shops, the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced …
Pot-Smoking NY Rioter Who Donned Fake Beard In Capitol Breach Gets 3 Years In Prison Pot-Smoking NY Rioter Who Donned Fake Beard In Capitol Breach Gets 3 Years In Prison
Pot-Smoking NY Rioter Who Donned Fake Beard In Capitol Breach Gets 3 Years In Prison A New York man who was photographed smoking marijuana inside a Senate office during the US Capitol breach on Jan. 6, 2021 will spend years in prison. Brandon Fellows, age 29, of Schenectady, was sentenced to 3 ½ years in federal lockup on Thursday, Feb. 29 after a Washington, DC jury found him guilty of obstructing an official proceeding, a felony. “His actions and the actions of others disrupted a joint session of the US Congress convened to ascertain and count the electoral votes related to the presidential election,” the US Attorney’s Office said. Earlier Report: Capitol Rioter F…
Westchester Man Used False Identity To Get Teen To Send Him Sexual Photos: Feds Westchester Man Used False Identity To Get Teen To Send Him Sexual Photos: Feds
Westchester Man Used False Identity To Get Teen To Send Him Sexual Photos: Feds A 31-year-old Westchester man faces decades in prison for using false identities to gain a teenager's trust and convince them to send him sexually explicit photos and videos, federal officials announced.  New Rochelle resident Charudet Smith, also known as Charles Smith, was arrested on Thursday, Feb. 8 on sexual exploitation charges, the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced on Friday, Feb. 9. According to federal officials, from around Dec. 21, 2019, up to around Feb. 13, 2020, Smith impersonated several people and created a series of Instagram accounts…
Westchester Man Nabbed For Sexually Exploiting Boy Gets More Charges: Feds Westchester Man Nabbed For Sexually Exploiting Boy Gets More Charges: Feds
Westchester Man Nabbed For Sexually Exploiting Boy Gets More Charges: Feds More details have emerged about a Northern Westchester man accused of sexually exploiting a teenage boy, federal officials announced.  Bedford Hills resident James Collins Jr., age 67, was arrested on sexual exploitation charges on Wednesday morning, Jan. 24, the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced.  According to federal officials, on Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023, Collins tried persuading an undercover agent posing as a 15-year-old boy to meet him at a library in New Castle to engage in sexual activities.  Earlier Report - Man Engages in Sexua…
Suspect Nabbed After Shooting 37-Year-Old Woman At Westchester Residence, Police Say Suspect Nabbed After Shooting 37-Year-Old Woman At Westchester Residence, Police Say
Suspect Nabbed After Shooting 37-Year-Old Woman At Westchester Residence, Police Say A suspect has been apprehended in connection with a shooting inside a Westchester home that left a woman hospitalized, police said. Click here for a new, updated report - Update: More Details Emerge After Man Shoots Ex-Girlfriend At Sleepy Hollow Residence, DA Says Ruben Louis Santiago, age 38, was arrested in connection with a shooting that happened at a Sleepy Hollow residence on Tuesday, Jan. 2, Sleepy Hollow Police announced on Wednesday, Jan 3.  According to the department, around 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Sleep Hollow Police officers responded to a residence on Chestnut Stree…
Murder-For-Hire: Man Admits Paying $16K Bitcoin To Have NY Residents Killed Murder-For-Hire: Man Admits Paying $16K Bitcoin To Have NY Residents Killed
Murder-For-Hire: Man Admits Paying $16K Bitcoin To Have NY Residents Killed A Utah man has admitted to paying thousands of dollars worth of Bitcoin to arrange for the murders of two New York residents. Christopher Pence, age 43, of Cedar City, Utah appeared in Albany federal court on Wednesday, Dec. 6, and pleaded guilty to using the internet to solicit and pay for murder. According to prosecutors, Pence admitted to contacting the administrator of a website dedicated to arranging contract killings in 2021. He confessed to paying them $16,000 worth of Bitcoin to facilitate the murder of two Hoosick Falls residents in Rensselaer County. Pence gave the administrato…
Temple Shooting: 28-Year-Old Federally Charged After Gunshots At NY Synagogue Temple Shooting: 28-Year-Old Federally Charged After Gunshots At NY Synagogue
Temple Shooting: 28-Year-Old Federally Charged After Gunshots At NY Synagogue The man accused of opening fire at a New York synagogue on the first day of Hanukkah has been federally charged. Mufid Fawaz Alkhader, age 28, of Schenectady, appeared in Albany federal court on Friday, Dec. 8, where he was arraigned on one count of unlawfully possessing a firearm. According to the criminal complaint, Alkhader approached Albany’s Temple Israel, located on New Scotland Avenue, at around 2 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 7 armed with a 12-gauge pump-action shotgun. He then fired the weapon twice into the air, prosecutors allege. Earlier Report: New Update: Shooting At NY Syna…