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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…

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by Joe Lombardi
Business
Shenanigans, Indeed: Manager At Capital Region Gentleman's Club Busted Selling Meth, Feds Say Shenanigans, Indeed: Manager At Capital Region Gentleman's Club Busted Selling Meth, Feds Say
Shenanigans, Indeed: Manager At Capital Region Gentleman's Club Busted Selling Meth, Feds Say The general manager of a gentleman’s club in the region is facing federal charges after he was allegedly busted in an undercover sting selling drugs. Luiggi Canessa, who manages Shenanigans gentlemen's club in Schenectady, is named in a complaint filed in US District Court in the Northern District on Tuesday, April 9. FBI agents began investigating a “wide array of crime” occurring at the club, as well as an adjoining business, Sheer Pleasure Lingerie, in late 2023, according to the complaint. That conduct allegedly included drug and sex trafficking, and wire fraud. Canessa, who manages…

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by Michael Mashburn
News
First Woman Takes Reins As Chief Of Detectives At Hudson Valley DA's Office First Woman Takes Reins As Chief Of Detectives At Hudson Valley DA's Office
First Woman Takes Reins As Chief Of Detectives At Hudson Valley DA's Office The first woman has been named to serve as Chief of Detectives for a Hudson Valley district attorney's office. Deirdre Smith was recently sworn in as the Chief of Detectives for the Rockland County District Attorney's Office, said Scott Waters, spokesman for the office. Smith is a graduate of Manhattan College. She started her law enforcement career in 1993 with the New York City Police Department and spent five years with the department before joining the Suffern Police Department. She served for 22 years with Suffern, retiring at the rank of sergeant. In Suffern, she was also the first f…

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by Kathy Reakes
News
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…

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by Michael Mashburn
News
Capital Region Man Admits Storing Child Porn On USB Flash Drive Capital Region Man Admits Storing Child Porn On USB Flash Drive
Capital Region Man Admits Storing Child Porn On USB Flash Drive A 40-year-old man from the region could spend decades behind bars for having child pornography. Schenectady County resident Aaron Griesche, of Niskayuna, pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography in Albany federal court on Thursday, Jan. 11. According to the US Attorney’s Office in the Northern District, Griesche admitted to storing illicit images of children on a USB flash drive that was found in his home in July 2021. He confessed to purchasing the memory stick online and then transferring videos depicting child sex abuse from the internet to the device. The case was investigated b…

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by Michael Mashburn
News
Capital Region Farmer Admits Blowing $1M In Relief Funds On New House, Personal Expenses Capital Region Farmer Admits Blowing $1M In Relief Funds On New House, Personal Expenses
Capital Region Farmer Admits Blowing $1M In Relief Funds On New House, Personal Expenses The money was supposed to go toward paying off his farm loan, but prosecutors say a man from the region blew nearly $1 million on personal expenses instead. Asjid Parvez, age 37, of Albany, pleaded guilty to one count of theft of government property in Albany federal court on Friday, Jan. 5. According to prosecutors, Parvez admitted to receiving a check for over $972,000 from the Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) in May 2023. The funds were authorized under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and are meant to assist borrowers who have fallen behind on their federally g…

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by Michael Mashburn
News
Teen Admits Having Machine Gun At Capital Region Home Teen Admits Having Machine Gun At Capital Region Home
Teen Admits Having Machine Gun At Capital Region Home An 18-year-old from the region could spend years behind bars after being busted with a machine gun. Rensselaer County resident Ahmed AlSaadi, of Troy, pleaded guilty to weapons charges in Albany federal court on Thursday, Dec. 21. Prosecutors said AlSaadi admitted that in August 2023 he possessed three machine gun conversion devices and a Glock handgun that had been modified with such a device. The conversion devices can be attached to a handgun allowing the weapon to shoot and function as a fully automatic machine gun. AlSaadi was arrested following a joint investigation by the ATF, FBI…

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by Michael Mashburn
News
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…

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by Michael Mashburn
News
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…

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by Michael Mashburn
News
IDs Released For Couple Killed In Fiery Crash On Bridge Linking NY, Canada Caught On Video IDs Released For Couple Killed In Fiery Crash On Bridge Linking NY, Canada Caught On Video
IDs Released For Couple Killed In Fiery Crash On Bridge Linking NY, Canada Caught On Video The identities have now been released of a couple killed after crashing near a bridge connecting the United States and Canada on one of the year's busiest travel days. The Thanksgiving Eve incident happened early Wednesday afternoon, Nov. 22 on the Rainbow Bridge at Niagara Falls, New York. Niagara Falls Police say  Kurt Villani, and his wife, Monica Villani, both age 53, died in the vehicle explosion which led to a federal investigation. The two were residents of Grand Island, New York, located about 10 miles southeast of Niagara Falls. Authorities say the couple had originally been…

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by Joe Lombardi
News
Condoms, Rope Found On NY Man Who Blackmailed Minors Into Sending Nudes, Feds Say Condoms, Rope Found On NY Man Who Blackmailed Minors Into Sending Nudes, Feds Say
Condoms, Rope Found On NY Man Who Blackmailed Minors Into Sending Nudes, Feds Say A New York man is in federal custody after allegedly blackmailing several underage girls into sending him sexually explicit images. Long Island resident Brandon Kern, age 29, of Bayport, was arraigned on multiple charges in Central Islip federal court on Wednesday, Nov. 22. An investigation found that between December 2020 and October 2021, he posed as a teenager on Snapchat in order to convince at least six underage girls to send him sexually explicit photos and videos. Some of the victims were as young as 12 years old, according to the FBI. When the girls attempted to block him, Kern al…

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by Michael Mashburn
News
24-Year-Old Hudson Valley Man Admits Killing Victim Of Home Burglary, DA Says 24-Year-Old Hudson Valley Man Admits Killing Victim Of Home Burglary, DA Says
24-Year-Old Hudson Valley Man Admits Killing Victim Of Home Burglary, DA Says A 24-year-old Hudson Valley man faces 25 in prison after admitting he killed a victim involved in a home burglary, according to authorities.  Ulster County resident Jacob Jackson, age 24, of Rosendale, pleaded guilty to manslaughter on Tuesday, Nov. 14, for the shooting death of Myron Moye, age 36, of Kingston, said Ulster County District Attorney David Clegg.  On Friday, Nov. 1, 2019, three men wearing masks and gloves broke into Moye's home, tied up occupants, and then stabbed, shot, and killed the victim and fled, Clegg said. Jackson was identified as one of the perp…

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by Kathy Reakes