Jersey City Police Officer Pleads Guilty to Transportation of Stolen Goods and Extortion

TRENTON, NJ—A Jersey City, New Jersey police officer today admitted stealing more than half a million cigarettes from a trailer and extorting $20,000 from a drug courier who turned out to be an undercover FBI agent, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.

Mario Rodriguez, 39, of Jersey City, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Anne E. Thompson in Trenton federal court to an information charging him with transportation of stolen goods and extortion under color of official right.

According to documents filed in the case and statements made in court:

On July 3, 2013, Rodriguez and an individual working for the FBI as a confidential informant (CI) drove to a warehouse in Secaucus, New Jersey to break into a trailer, steal cigarettes, and sell the stolen goods to the CI’s associate. Law enforcement agents had previously parked the trailer at the warehouse and established surveillance of the area.

After using bolt-cutters to cut the lock off of the trailer, Rodriguez and the CI loaded 50 cases containing approximately 600,000 cigarettes and six televisions from the trailer into their vehicle. As they drove the stolen items to a parking lot in Staten Island, New York, Rodriguez made several phone calls seeking buyers for the TVs.

The pair met the CI’s associate—actually an undercover officer—in the parking lot to get the $5,000 payment for the cigarettes. Rodriguez kept $3,000 of the cash and three of the TVs.

On July 10, 2013, Rodriguez, the CI and an undercover law enforcement agent met in New Jersey and discussed the possibility of robbing a drug courier, who was actually another undercover officer. On July 24, 2013, the group met again in Staten Island to discuss the plan. The undercover officer told Rodriguez the courier would be delivering cocaine to them that day in exchange for a $20,000 payment. Rodriguez suggested a Jersey City mall parking lot due to an absence of surveillance cameras and called his associate, Anthony Roman, 48, of Jersey City, who was not a law enforcement officer, to help him with the robbery. Roman was charged with one count of Hobbs Act extortion.

Later that day, Rodriguez and Roman drove an SUV to the location where the CI and the drug courier were parked. Law enforcement agents had already established surveillance and staged the car containing $20,000 cash in a plastic bag. Rodriguez and Roman approached the car and identified themselves as law enforcement officers who were investigating the CI. They pretended to arrest the CI, threatened to arrest the drug courier and took the cash.

Later that day, Rodriguez, the CI and the undercover agent met in a hotel room at a Pennsylvania casino to split the cash.

The cargo theft and conspiracy to commit extortion charges to which Rodriguez pleaded guilty carry a maximum potential penalty of 10 and 20 years in prison, respectively. Both counts also carry a maximum fine of $250,000. Sentencing is scheduled for September 26, 2014. Rodriguez has been suspended from the police department.

U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford in Newark; the Special Investigations Unit of the Jersey City Police Department, under the direction of Acting Chief Joseph Connors; the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Acting Prosecutor Gaetano T. Gregory; and criminal investigators of the U.S. Attorney’s Office with the investigation leading to today’s plea. He also thanked the Bayonne Police Department, Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor, IRS-Criminal Investigation, U.S. Department of Labor Office of Inspector General, and the N.J. State Commission of Investigation for their significant contributions to the investigation.

The government is represented by Acting Deputy Chief of the General Crimes Unit Jonathan W. Romankow in Newark.

The charges against Roman remain pending. They are merely accusations, and he remains innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Hudson County Trio Indicted for Robberies of Sovereign Bank in Secaucus and TD Bank in Fairview

NEWARK, NJ—Two men and a woman from Hudson County, New Jersey were indicted today in connection with their roles in two bank robberies that took place last summer, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Gary Bohanan, 44; Angel Feliu, 20; and Josephine Chenet, 45, all of North Bergen, New Jersey, are each charged by indictment with two counts of bank robbery. The indictment was returned by a federal grand jury sitting in Newark.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Bohanan, Feliu, and Chenet allegedly robbed the Sovereign Bank (now Santander Bank), in Secaucus, New Jersey, on July 22, 2013. Bohanan and Feliu entered the bank at 10:11 a.m. Both wore latex gloves on their hands and masks over their faces. Once inside, Bohanan brandished a black handgun, jumped over the counter, and proceeded to empty two drawers of money into a black bag, while pointing the handgun at bank tellers. As Bohanan emptied the drawers, Feliu stood guard. Bohanan and Feliu then fled the bank into a car driven by Chenet.
Bohanan, Feliu, and Chenet also allegedly robbed the TD Bank in Fairview, New Jersey, on July 26, 2013. Bohanan and Feliu, both wearing latex gloves and masks, entered the bank at 9:48 a.m. Feliu was recorded by the bank’s video surveillance system before he pulled the mask over his face. Once inside the TD Bank, Feliu brandished a knife at employees and customers. Bohanan brandished what appeared to be a black handgun but was later identified as an air pistol. Bohanan jumped over the counter and proceeded to empty two drawers of money into a black bag, while pointing the air pistol at bank tellers. As Bohanan emptied the drawers, Feliu stood guard and held bystanders back by brandishing the knife.
Bohanan and Feliu fled on foot and were followed by concerned citizens and victims of the bank robbery. Bohanan encountered a white GMC Savana van, pointed the air pistol at the driver, and ordered the driver out of the van. Bohanan then took control of the van and attempted to flee the area by driving away in the van, drove a short distance, and crashed. He exited the van and attempted to flee on foot. Law enforcement and concerned citizens located Bohanan hiding under a truck, which was parked a short distance away. Bohanan was found with a black bag containing, among other things, a black air pistol and money covered with red dye.
Feliu separated from Bohanan after the bank robbery and was seen getting into the passenger’s seat of a waiting vehicle that was driven by Chenet. Citizens followed the vehicle as it drove away at a high rate of speed and observed Feliu exit the vehicle and run into a cemetery in North Bergen, where he was located by law enforcement.
The counts of bank robbery with which Bohanan, Feliu, and Chenet are each charged each carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000. Bohanan and Feliu have been detained pending trial.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, with the investigation. He also thanked the Fairview, North Bergen, and Secaucus Police Departments for their contributions to the case.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Francisco J. Navarro of the U.S. Attorney’s Office General Crimes Unit in Newark.
The charges and allegations contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are considered innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Deputy Director of Hudson County Correctional Center Charged with Wiretapping Fellow Workers

NEWARK, NJ—The deputy director of the Hudson County Correctional Center surrendered today to law enforcement and was charged by complaint with illegally wiretapping fellow employees, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Kirk Eady, 45, of East Brunswick, New Jersey, is charged by complaint with one count of intentionally intercepting the wire, oral, or electronic communications of others. He is expected to make his initial court appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph A. Dickson in Newark federal court.
According to the documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Between March 2012 and July 2012, Eady used the services of a publicly available website to place telephone calls to four Hudson County Correctional Center employees. The website allowed Eady to conceal the telephone numbers from where the calls originated and also call and record two people simultaneously and make it appear as those people, and not Eady, originated the call. Eady recorded these telephone conversations and did not inform the Hudson County Correctional Center employees that he was recording them. Eady admitted to a cooperating witness that he had recorded conversations with three employees.
The illegal interception offense with which Eady is charged is punishable by a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited agents of the FBI Newark Field Office, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Aaron T. Ford, with the investigation leading to today’s charges.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney David L. Foster of the U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecution’s Division.
Defense counsel: Peter Willis Esq., Jersey City, N.J.