Subscribe
79°
Fraudster Sold 266% Of NY Property He Never Owned, Stole $3 Million From Investors: Feds
A fraudster stole more than $3 million by selling properties across Long Island and Westchester County, including at least one he owned no part of, according to federal investigators.
Alberto Gomez, 48, of Boca Raton, FL, used a Queens-based accounting practice to carry out the brazen scheme, the Justice Department said Monday, Aug. 10.
Gomez’s most ambitious project centered on a Mount Vernon property, where he met with seven different investors and convinced them they were entering exclusive agreements to co-own the property with him, investigators said.
Through the scheme, Gomez effecti…
Babies Suffer Injuries From Recalled Swings, Jumpers: See Which Ones
More than 41,000 baby jumpers and swings have been recalled after dozens of reported injuries.
Taleco Gear issued the recall for about 41,100 G Taleco Gear Baby Jumpers, Baby Swings, and 2-in-1 Baby Jumper & Swings, the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced on Thursday, Aug. 13. About 150 were also sold in Canada.
The jumpers and swings can become unstable, creating fall and impact dangers. Hanging restraint straps and seat openings can also pose a risk of strangulation.
Taleco has received at least 52 reports of fall, impact, and strangulation hazards, according to the CPS…
No Floors, No Refunds: LI Flooring Contractor Admits $90K Hamptons Rip-Offs, DA Says
A Long Island flooring contractor has admitted to stealing $90,000 and bailing on three projects, authorities announced Thursday, Aug. 13.
Leones Martins Rodrigues, 40, of East Islip, took the money for three jobs across Southampton and East Hampton from May 2022 to February 2024, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office said. Martins Rodrigues was the owner of Smart Flooring.
But instead of completing the work, Martins Rodrigues simply drained his accounts to pay down outstanding debts, investigators said. He never even purchased any hardwood flooring as promised, according to authori…
LI Dessert Shop Worker Scored Sweet Payday With $11K Theft Scheme, Police Say
A Long Island business lost $11,000 to a thieving former employee writing fake checks, police said Thursday, Aug. 13.
Leeanna Luke, 25, of Brooklyn, swiped $11,828.13 from Ralph’s Italian Ices in Melville by forging and depositing 15 checks into her personal account, the Suffolk County Police Department said.
The owner of the dessert shop noticed multiple unauthorized transactions on his bank account for checks to Luke, a former employee, investigators said. After cops looked into the case, they arrested Luke on Thursday around 7:15 a.m., according to police.
Luke was charged with first-de…
Fentanyl Dealing, Party Shooting Land LI Bloods Member Decades In Prison, Feds Say
A Long Island Bloods gang member who shot up a house party in the Hamptons and supplied fentanyl for a deadly overdose was sentenced Wednesday, Aug. 12 to prison time, authorities said.
Joshua Crowell, 32, of Huntington, got 27 years after pleading guilty to various gang-related charges, the Justice Department said.
Crowell was a proud member of the “Bloodhound Brims” set for years, participating in various acts of violence and drug sales, the feds said.
“His criminal conduct left three people wounded by gunfire, claimed one life through a fatal overdose, and caused two others to suffer ov…
