Jocelyn E. Strauber, Commissioner of the New York City Department of Investigation (“DOI”), issued the following statement on the guilty plea of an Emergency Medical Technician (“EMT”) employed by the New York City Fire Department (“FDNY”) to a charge of stealing $600 from a DOI undercover investigator posing as an ill patient. This type of undercover operation, also known as an integrity test, was prompted by theft allegations involving this EMT. The office of Queens County District Attorney Melinda Katz prosecuted the case.
LUIS A. CARRILLO, JR., 44, of Corona, N.Y., was charged in August 2023 with Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, a class E felony, and Petit Larceny and Official Misconduct, both class A misdemeanors. Today, CARRILLO pled guilty to both Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree and Petit Larceny. If he is successful and completes a substance abuse program, resigns from the FDNY and surrenders his EMT certification the felony will be dismissed, and he will be sentenced to a conditional discharge on the misdemeanor Petit Larceny. If he fails to complete any of these he will be sentenced to 364 days in jail on the felony. He has already resigned from FDNY and surrendered his EMT certification and has agreed to not seek recertification as an EMT in New York State or any other state.
DOI Commissioner Jocelyn E. Strauber said, “This defendant, an EMT, stole from an undercover en route to a hospital via ambulance, who appeared in need of medical care. This defendant breached the trust placed in EMTs, who provide critical services every day to New Yorkers in dire need. As a result of his guilty plea, he will lose his EMT certification and his job with the FDNY, a serious punishment and an important step in taking responsibility for his criminal conduct. I thank the Queens District Attorney for their partnership on this important investigation.”
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said: “The EMTS of New York City perform lifesaving work every day of the week. Unfortunately, this defendant brought dishonor to his profession by stealing $600 from an undercover investigator during an integrity test. With today’s plea to a felony, this defendant will receive an appropriate sentence for his conduct. I thank our partners at the Department of Investigation for their assistance in this case.”
According to the criminal complaint, DOI conducted an integrity test at about 3:26 a.m. Wednesday, August 2, 2023, on Roosevelt Avenue in Queens, in which a DOI undercover investigator (the “Undercover”) posed as a patient in need of medical assistance. The Undercover was transported to Elmhurst Hospital in Queens (the “Hospital”) for treatment, in an ambulance staffed by the defendant, an EMT. During the transport the Undercover saw the defendant remove the Undercover’s wallet, which contained $1,100 in marked bills. Once the Undercover was dropped off at the Hospital, he discovered that $690 was missing from his wallet. A team of DOI investigators conducted surveillance of the operation, and stopped the ambulance after it left the Hospital. DOI investigators approached the defendant, who was in the ambulance, and recovered $600 in marked bills from the defendant’s front right pocket. Investigators did not find the additional $90 that was missing from the Undercover’s wallet. The defendant was immediately arrested.
CARRILLO, JR., has been employed as an EMT since October 2012, receives an annual salary of approximately $59,534, and has been suspended since his arraignment on criminal charges in August 2023.
Commissioner Strauber thanked Queens County District Attorney Melinda Katz, Public Corruption Bureau Acting Chief Christine Oliveri, and Assistant District Attorney Vinnette Campbell, who is handling the prosecution of this case. Commissioner Strauber also thanked NYC Health + Hospitals President and Chief Executive Officer Dr. Mitchell Katz, Acting FDNY Commissioner Joseph Pfeifer, FDNY Assistant Commissioner Carlos Velez, and FDNY Investigators Justin Boyle and Miguel Correa for their assistance with the logistics for the integrity test.
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