Latest news with #DomainAwarenessSystem
Yahoo
14-04-2025
- Yahoo
Ex-NYPD cop took bribes to help burglary crew get info from databases: DA
A retired NYPD cop took bribes to search police databases when he was on the force, feeding his criminal cousin info to help members of a burglary ring, prosecutors said Monday. Richard Arce, 54 sold his police shield for cheap, typically taking $40 to $50 for each search, according to Brooklyn prosecutors. He fed his cousin arrest warrant info and police reports, and ran license plates, conducting more than 70 searches from 2021 to 2023, often texting his cousin while on the job assigned to Brooklyn Criminal Court on Schermerhorn St., prosecutors said. On Monday, Arce was hit with a 114-count indictment in Brooklyn Supreme Court charging him with bribe receiving, conspiracy, unauthorized use of a computer, and official misconduct. His cousin, Raymond Ramos, 42, of the Bronx, was charged in January. 'This defendant allegedly betrayed his badge when he provided confidential information to people accused of crimes,' Brooklyn DA Eric Gonzalez said Monday. 'This was a shocking abuse of the trust he was granted and an example of corruption that could have led to serious public safety consequences.' Arce, who's lived in the Dominican Republic since his retirement in 2023, was arrested by local authorities in the country in January after he tried to renew his passport. He appeared in Brooklyn Supreme Court Monday. Arce, who joined the NYPD in 2008, conducted the searches for Ramos, as well as for Alexander 'Chaco' Torres and Jesus 'Capone' Cedeno — who were charged in March 2023 with conspiring to break into stores and steal ATMs. Starting in March 2021, Arce accessed the NYPD's 'Domain Awareness System' looking for information at Ramos' request, prosecutors allege. He looked for 'i-cards' that would show whether Ramos and his pals were wanted for questioning, and looked for active warrants, according to the indictment. And he made sure he got paid, prosecutors allege. On Oct. 23, 2022, he sent Ramos two screenshots while on duty, one of which showed Ramos had an active bench warrant from the Bronx, according to the indictment. The next day, he followed up with another text, 'Don't forget the $25 cuz.' And on Nov. 1, 2022, he sent along information showing Torres had two warrants out on him, and when Ramos asked him a day later to search Cedeno, the cop replied. 'Nope. No $. No Honey. So far I've received $0.' After Ramos promised to pay, Arce texted, 'If Cedeno pays I'll check. No freebies, according to the indictment.' Torres and Cedeno have since pleaded guilty in the ATM burglary case and are awaiting sentencing. Arce was arraigned before Judge Archana Rao Monday, pleaded not guilty and was released without bail. He and Ramos will appear together before Brooklyn Supreme Court Judge Danny Chun on May 7. Neither he nor his defense lawyer, Peter Guadagnino, commented as they left the courtroom.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Yahoo
Migrant busted in fatal shooting of NYC teenager thanks to DNA sample from US border
A 37-year-old illegal immigrant was charged Wednesday in the slaying of a Bronx teenager last year – after detectives used DNA from a sweatshirt they snatched out of a laundromat dryer to help crack the case, according to law enforcement sources. Kenhy Sarrias Buelvas was arrested six months after he allegedly opened fire on 16-year-old Kemari Sanders while the young victim was riding on a moped with a pal in the Bronx around 4 a.m. on Aug. 23, according to police and sources. The pair reached Bryant Street and were turning around to look for a phone one of them lost when bullets started flying, striking Sanders in the neck, sources said. It's believed Buelvas, an alleged drug dealer, pulled the trigger because he saw the two riding around and thought they wanted to rob him, according to sources. 'This guy was a drug dealer – and probably thought they were riding around looking to rob him, so what does he do? He kills a kid who's just looking for his cellphone,' a source told The Post. The teen died from his injuries more than a month later on Oct. 4, morphing the shooting into a homicide case that required a combo of gritty old-school and high-tech police work. In the early stages of their probe, investigators tracked down a wide array of video surveillance that led them to a laundromat where the gunman allegedly threw a sweatshirt into a dryer and then fled, sources said. Detectives retrieved that piece of clothing, which was tested for any DNA. In the meantime, the NYPD spread a wanted flyer that led to a tip from a caller who said the person on the flyer resembled a Colombian who sells weed from a van in the area, according to sources. Police finally reached a breakthrough earlier this month when DNA from the clothing pinged a match to DNA collected by Customs and Border Protection in Laredo, Texas dating back to December 23, 2023, sources said. Buelvas had attempted to cross into the country illegally and was captured before he was released into the states, sources said. A picture taken of the border crosser from that day was also sent back to New York by the feds, which appeared to show the same man on the wanted flyer. To further bolster their case, authorities then found a transit summons that was issued to the alleged shooter in June 2024 in the Bronx, leading them to comb over body-worn footage from that day that matched up with the same person in the wanted flyer and at the border crossing, sources said. Buelvas was finally picked up by the NYPD Warrants Squad and charged with murder, manslaughter and illegal gun possession. He's believed to have been working at a Manhattan car dealership leading up to his arrest, sources said. The NYPD's Domain Awareness System, which is a network where officers can find up-to-date information to aid investigations, was a big help in solving the case. 'You look at all the steps that got us from DNA to a transit summons that put this guy in cuffs – without the Domain Awareness System that never would have been possible,' a source explained. Additional reporting by Amanda Woods and Jorge Fitz-Gibbon
