Team Blake Election Eve Meeting

  As he walked down the long hallway Public Advocate Michael Blake was going to a meeting in Coop-City. There he would meet supporters from the Coop-City area which included State Senator Jamaal Bailey one of Blake's many Bronx Supporters. However missing would be Councilman Andy King who is supporting Public Advocate candidate Jumaane Williams. That is how it is with seventeen candidates in the Public Advocate Special Election local elected officials are split on just who they have endorsed.

Above - State Senator Jamaal Bailey announces the arrival of candidate Michael Blake.

Below - Candidate Blake enters the room pointing to himself when asked who is going to be the next Public Advocate.

Above - It was time to rally the troops as Candidate Blake speaks. He mentioned his brothe and mother who were in the room.

Below - Mama Blake raises her hand when her son mentions her name.

Above - With the troops ready for election day a group photo is taken.

Below - A final photo with the elected officials.

MAYOR DE BLASIO AND GOVERNOR CUOMO ANNOUNCE 10 POINT PLAN TO TRANSFORM AND FUND THE MTA

  Mayor Bill de Blasio and Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced a proposal to transform the MTA and create dedicated and sustained funding streams for the agency. The proposal includes the joint endorsement of congestion pricing and a plan to reorganize the MTA.

 1 - MTA will develop a reorganization plan to make the agency more efficient and effective. The antiquated structure will be fundamentally changed to centralize common functions among the 6 existing entities. Currently – NYCTA, LIRR, Metro-North, MTA Capital Construction, MTA Bus, SI Railway – operate as 6 separate entities.  This 1968-designed “holding company” structure makes coordination more difficult and expensive. All common functions such as construction management, legal, engineering, procurement, human resources, advertising etc. will be consolidated and streamlined in a central operation. The individual divisions will focus on day-to-day management of their primary operation. The restructuring plan will be completed by June of this year. The restructuring plan must be coupled with a change in culture, which will generate fresh ideas and new perspective from new and recently appointed senior and mid-level management recruited from the private sector and other cities and states.

 2 - The MTA Transformation Plan would include a congestion pricing financing model.  Electronic tolling devices would be installed on the perimeter of the Central Business District (CBD) defined as streets south of 61st St. in Manhattan.  The FDR Drive will not be included in the Central Business District.  The electronic tolling system will account for tolls previously paid by drivers entering Manhattan from designated crossings. The system will be installed and operated pursuant to an MOU between the City of New York and the MTA for the purposes of ensuring the timely completion of the installation of congestion infrastructure in order to effectuate a congestion pricing plan, and recognizing the expertise of the TBTA for purposes of running and operating cashless tolling systems and City agencies for purposes of the use and impact of infrastructure installation on City streets.  Tolls would be variable providing discounts for off-peak hour travel.   Emergency vehicles will be exempt from congestion pricing tolls. Other exemptions or discounts will be provided to a limited group of vehicles entering the CBD including vehicles operated by or transporting people with disabilities and individuals who have an identifiable hardship or limited ability to access medical facilities in the CBD. Congestion pricing tolls would be supplemented with State and City revenue from a fixed amount of the new internet sales tax derived from sales in New York City, with a growth factor, and a percentage of the State and City revenue from the cannabis excise tax.  Congestion pricing revenue and these two taxes will be placed in a ‘lockbox’ to provide a funding source necessary to ensure the capital needs of the MTA can be met, with priority given to the subway system, new signaling, new subway cars, track and car repair, accessibility, buses and bus system improvements and further investments in expanding transit availability to areas in the outer boroughs that have limited mass transit options.  Tolls will be set once the electronic infrastructure is in place and a Capital Plan is finalized but will in no event be set later than December 2020.

 3 - The MTA fares for public mass transportation must be controlled in future years through cost containment actions and improved management. The MTA should be able to operate with mass transit fare increases limited to inflationary increases of 2% per year.

 4 - All MTA Board appointments will be modified so that all terms end with the appointing elected official’s tenure.

 5 - Partnership between the State and City is necessary to combat fare evasion.  We cannot have a voluntary fare system and still maintain a system that ensures operational stability.  The State will work with the MTA, City and District Attorneys to develop an enforcement strategy, with both personnel and station design modifications that do not criminalize fare evasion but instead prevent fare evasion, sanction violators and increase enforcement.

 6 - The MTA will undergo an independent audit to determine their actual assets and liabilities.  The initial audit should be completed no later than January of 2020. The forecasts, projections and capital plans they have put forth strain financial credibility.

 7 - The Capital Plan shall be reviewed by a committee of transportation, engineering and government experts who have no existing financial relationship with the MTA (The Regional Transit Committee, “RTC”).  The Committee will have appointees by the Governor, Mayor, State Assembly and Senate, and organizations representing subway riders and driving commuters.  The RTC will also review the toll and fare increases proposed by the MTA as necessary to fund the Capital Plan.

 8 - The MTA will have all major construction projects and planned projects pursued as “design build.”  The MTA will do preliminary drawings only to the point necessary for bidding the project in a private sector competition based primarily on cost and timing of the project.  Selections will be made with incentives and sanctions for performance.  All major construction projects will be reviewed by construction and engineering experts who are not affiliated with the MTA or its consultants.  The construction review team will be headed by the Deans of Cornell School of Engineering and Columbia School of Engineering to assure state of the art design and technology is being deployed.  This group will also review the plans for signal system upgrade methodology and decide the best system to use, specifically comparing Communications Based Train Control (CBTC) to Ultra-Wide-Band (UWB) technology for safety, timeliness and cost.  The MTA will be more aggressive in debarring failed contractors.

 9 - The MTA will immediately expedite the completion of the Subway Action Plan including: signal repair; water management; station enhancements; rail welding; friction pad installation; increased refurbishment efforts; and other service improvements.

 10 - The Governor and Mayor will work closely with the Legislature to effectuate provisions in this framework.

Press Clips: Public Advocate Special Election, 2/26

L – R, Michael Knobbe (Bronxnet General Manager), Nomiki Konst, Ron Kim, Michael Blake, Anthony Herbert, Host Gary Axelbank, Ydanis Rodriguez, Benjamin Yee, Dawn Smalls, Rafael Espinal, David Eisenbach, and Jared Rich at the recent Public Advocate debate on Bronxnet.

  Last month, twenty-three people filed petitions to run for the vacant position of New York City Public Advocate, and seventeen candidates (one suspended her campaign) made it onto Tuesday’s nonpartisan Special Election ballot. Because it is a City Charter-mandated nonpartisan special election candidates will not be running as Democrats, Republicans, Conservative or Green Party. They had to choose independent body names to appear on the ballot under their names. Despite a weather forecast that calls for good weather, voter turnout is expected to be extremely low.

This race can ben divided into three tiers, the top three candidates, where the winner will emerge, a middle tier of credible also-rans, and the bottom seven candidates who won’t factor into the outcome. Those bottom seven include Manny Alicandro, David Eisenbach, Anthony Herbert, Jared Rich, Hetal Sheikh, Benjamin Yee, and Brooklyn Assemblywoman Latrice Walker, who suspended her campaign after failing to withdraw her name from the ballot. These seven candidates plus any write in votes should account to less than five percent of the vote.

The 10 leading Public Advocate candidates in Tuesday’s nonpartisan special election. Credit: Gotham Gazette.

The vote for the seven second-tier candidates should go like this – Nomiki Konst, Ron Kim, Daniel O’Donnell, Rafael Espinal, Ydanis Rodriguez, Melissa Mark-Viverito, and Dawn Smalls each receiving between five and ten percent of the vote. With seventeen candidates in the race, if any of these can go over the ten percent mark they could, but most likely are not going to be the winner.

That leaves Councilman Jumaane Williams (D-Brooklyn), Assemblyman Michael Blake (D-Bronx), and Councilman Eric Ulrich (R-Queens), all current elected officials from different boroughs, as the likeliest to be elected on Tuesday night.

While many pundits believe that this is Jumaane Williams’ special election to lose (as he ran a very credible and surprisingly close race for Lt. Governor last September), he like several other candidates comes from Brooklyn. Assemblyman Blake of the Bronx has been campaigning heavily in Brooklyn. Blake hails from a borough where not one favorite son has ever been elected to citywide office. NYU professor and political scientist Mitchell Moss has called The Bronx “a political graveyard.” Also splitting the Brooklyn vote is attorney Dawn Smalls — a political unknown who like Michael Blake worked in the Obama administration — who has come on in this election like a raging forest fire. Although she not in my top tier, Smalls is my dark horse candidate, who either wins or determines just who does win.

Councilman Eric Ulrich is one of only two Republicans (Manny Alicantro is the other GOPer) against fourteen Democrats and, if this were the general election, he would be facing just one or even two Democrats (the second on a minor party line) but not fourteen (Latrice Walker dropped out of the race). While the Democrats are fighting to win the same voter base, Ulrich has the advantage in this race, as all he has to do is coalesce Republican, Conservative and anti-de Blasio independent voters in Queens, Staten Island, and the Bronx. That path to victory taken many years ago by former Mayor Rudy Giuliani — although he only faced incumbent Democrat David Dinkins. It’s important to note that Councilman Ulrich represents a district where the electorate is more than two-thirds Democratic.

Late last week the New York Times endorsed Jumaane Williams, while the New York Post and New York Daily News endorsed Eric Ulrich. It is very likely that none of the top three candidates will break the twenty percent mark. The winner of this special election is going to take office with the lowest percentage of the vote in the history of the Office of Public Advocate. I predict that the winner of this nonpartisan  special election for Public Advocate will be Queens Councilman Eric Ulrich who is running on the Common Sense ballot line.

You can reach Robert Press at 100percentbronxnews@gmail.com.

This is reprinted from the Bronx Chronicle February 25, 2019. https://thebronxchronicle.com/2019/02/25/press-clips-public-advocate-special-election/

Councilman, Rubén Díaz Sr. - A FEW THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW

By Councilman, Rubén Díaz Sr.

District 18 Bronx County, New York

You should know that given the recent controversy surrounding me and the New York City Council has prompted my “friends” and those that I helped acquire their elected positions turn their backs on me.  But I want you to know this is nothing new. Given my past experiences in my life I have develop a thick skin, and grown in my faith to the all mighty.  

 

It is important for you to know that in 1960, during the Vietnam conflict, while many Americans, well connected politicians, and celebrities used their influence to avoid the draft, and others fled to Canada, and other countries I did the opposite.  As a young 18 year old kid, I chose to volunteer and serve my country in the United States Army. Which I am proud to say I did honorably.

My basic training was at Fort Jackson South Carolina.  Remember this was in the early 1960’s in the Jim Crow South. Never mind that I was a United States Army Soldier, if I wanted a drink of water, I was forced to drink out of the water fountain labeled “Colored”.   I was also ordered by those in command to pick up cigarette butts thrown on the sidewalk by White folks.

I can’t help but remember my personal experiences and horrible abuses committed against Black people.  Out of many instances one in particular comes to mind.    It was during my first pass.   I was in the company of my “friends” fellow soldiers who like me were Puerto Rican, one difference though, they were light skin, or should I say White.  

I was all decked out, so proud to be dressed in my Army Uniform, going into town with my buddies, my fellow soldiers.  We decided to go into a bar and enjoy a couple of beers.  When the waiter came to our table he took everyone’s order but not mine.  As he turned to walk away I said “hey waiter, you didn’t take my order”.  He turned, looked at me and said “Whatever you’re looking for, we haven’t got it.”   I looked at my “friends”, my fellow Puerto Ricans, and fellow Soldiers expecting their support, and hoping they would walk out with me, but instead they told me, “looks like you’re going to have to leave.”   Realizing I was alone, I quietly left the bar.  However, my “friends” stayed and enjoyed their beer. 

I completed my tour of duty with an honorable discharge.  However, when I returned to my home town in Bayamon, Puerto Rico, my experience in the Segregated, Jim Crow, South nearly destroyed my life.  In 1965 I left Puerto Rico and migrated to Brooklyn New York, at Sutter Avenue to be exact.  

It was there in Brooklyn NY., that in a small African American Pentecostal church my life took a turn for the better.  I converted to Christianity.  Based on my faith I don’t smoke, don’t drink, don’t dance, and I don’t need any of it to be happy.  As a result of my faith, and my thick skin I find happiness inspite of all the attacks, persecution and adversity that may come my way.   I am ever so grateful for my many blessings.   I have much to be grateful for.

In 1993 I was appointed to serve as a Commissioner, representing the Bronx, on the CCRB, {Civilian Complaint Review Board}.   It was here, at a CCRB hearing that a member of the Gay Community attacked me when he violently threw a pitcher of water at me. He then hurled the pitcher hitting me with it. He was not arrested for assault, and I did not press any charges. 

My comments and my positions have often been taken out of context. This has resulted in my being called by a very hateful term, a “Homophobe.”  Anyone who has dealt with me, and knows me personally knows that this is a false description of who I am. A clear example of this is the position I took regarding The Harvey Milk School.   

The HM school was created in New York City exclusively to serve Gay students.  It was going to be a high-end school.  They boasted it would have the latest in technology, with the best equipment and it would be the best of the best in public schools. My opposition was not the school. It was clearly based on the fact that this “high-end school” was being opened exclusively for Gay students and not to ALL students.  Given that tax payer dollars were being used for the creation of this exclusive public school, I opposed its lack of diversity, multi-culturalism, and overall inclusion of other groups. 

In certain case’s we demand inclusion for all, and then in some cases we want segregation and exclusivity and demand special treatment for some.  We must be sincere when we espouse in favor of equality, inclusion and fair treatment for all. Either we favor inclusion for all or we don’t. My dear reader we cannot have it both ways.

This created a political fire storm for me and again I was branded a “homophobe.”  I stood my ground because I felt I was right, so I took my opposition to court. Upon an agreement that the Harvey Milk school would be opened to all students, heterosexuals, Blacks, Latinos and other students I dropped the law suit. But the name calling continued and the true facts of my opposition were ignored.  

Throughout the years as a public servant I have been the object of diatribes, numerous death threats, profane, filthy and hateful language has been used to address me.  The venom is such that my closest friends and associates, out of fear, abandon and openly reject me.  I give you one of the most crystal, clear examples.

Assemblyman Michael Blake, an African American, elected official I called a friend and part of my working community team. He donated $1,000 to my City Council campaign.  Someone got to him, and he was forced to publicly denounce me, and request that I return his donation.  Which he, unabashedly, asked me to return.  Needless to say, I did not.  

Others have been forced not to accept my endorsement or else they will face a backlash.  Business people have been threatened with negative repercussions if they dare donate to my campaign. 

Now we see how far they are willing to go without any regard as to who gets hurt with the actions they take. Recently as you know The City Council voted against the Taxi Industry which will negatively impact the taxi drivers and their lively hood.  The majority of the City Council members voted to eliminate/ abolish the committee that exclusively advocates on behalf of Taxi Drivers. The “For Hire Vehicles Committee” helped the taxi industry by monitoring and preventing further injustices, abuses and discriminatory practices that the taxi drivers have been subjected to. 

Frankly I don’t understand the City Councils action to eliminate the “For Hire Vehicles Committee”.   Removing me from its leadership position is one thing, but abolishing the Committee all together is something else.  This hurts the Taxi Drivers.  Especially during this time when nine (9) taxi drivers have committed suicide due to years of the abuses inflicted upon them by The NYC Council, its previous speaker, and the NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission. They allowed Uber, and other unregulated for hire vehicle companies to destroy the taxi drivers’ investments add to that the abusive astronomical fees and penalties imposed upon them brought them to the brink of bankruptcy. 

With the elimination of the “For Hire Vehicles Committee” proper monitoring and advocacy on behalf of the drivers and Taxi industry will suffer. The NYC Council with their vote to eliminate this committee has opened the door for the return of these abuses and this may lead to an end of the yellow taxi and livery Industry.  All of that in their senseless quest to persecute and shame me into submission.  That’s fine. But the City Council must answer this question, why abolish the committee, why not just appoint someone else to its leadership position?

As for me I will continue to serve in my elected capacity as a Councilman until I am term limited or my constituents decide otherwise.  In closing I quote 2nd Corinthians 4:8-9.

^“We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair;  persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;”

  

This is Councilman Rev. Ruben Diaz, and this is What You Should Know.  

SIX INDICTED FOLLOWING OVER 50 SALES OF NARCOTICS IN HARLEM: TWO HANDGUNS SEIZED

Bridget G. Brennan, New York City’s Special Narcotics Prosecutor and New York City Police Commissioner James P. O’Neill announced today the arrest and indictment of six individuals in connection with an investigation that involved more than 50 sales of crack cocaine and heroin in the vicinity of the West 123rd Street and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard in Harlem.

Each of the six defendants is charged in a separate indictment filed in Manhattan Supreme Court by the Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor. The arrests followed a long-term investigation by the New York City Police Department’s (NYPD) Manhattan North Narcotics. Arraignments are scheduled for this afternoon before Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Felicia A. Mennin, Part 22, 111 Centre Street. The defendants face charges of Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree.

The investigation began in response to community complaints about persistent drug trafficking in the vicinity of 225 West 123rd Street. The defendants allegedly congregated in groups to sell narcotics on the block and impeded the ability of passersby, including school children, to safely use the sidewalks. At least five schools are located within a three-block radius of the block. Peak times for conducting drug sales fell between the hours of 2 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.

Beginning in June of 2017, loosely affiliated narcotics dealers allegedly made more than 50 sales of crack cocaine and heroin to an NYPD undercover officer. On some days multiple defendants sold to the undercover officer in rapid succession. In instances when one dealer was low on supply, he would refer customers to another dealer nearby.

During the investigation, defendant NANA POKU allegedly conducted 17 sales of crack cocaine and heroin to the undercover officer, the most of all of the defendants. Defendant GARY REID allegedly served as a heroin supplier for POKU. Aside from POKU and REID, the other defendants exclusively sold crack cocaine to the undercover officer.

In conjunction with the arrests this morning, members of the NYPD’s Manhattan North Narcotics conducted court authorized searches of three apartments, including POKU’s residence at 135 West 123rd Street. POKU was in his bedroom when police arrived. From underneath his mattress, police recovered two handguns. Quantities of suspected crack cocaine were found scattered around the apartment. Defendant DARREN SQUIRE was also arrested inside POKU’s residence.

Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget G. Brennan thanked her office’s Trial Division, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr. and the NYPD’s Manhattan North Narcotics.

“I hope these arrests give relief to the beleaguered residents of West 123rd Street.  School children and people on their way home from a long day at work had to push past dealers clogging sidewalks, making them feel uneasy in their own neighborhood,” said Special Narcotics Prosecutor Brennan. “In search warrants today, we seized crack cocaine alongside firearms, reminding all that violence and drug dealing often go hand in hand.  I commend the NYPD’s Manhattan North Narcotics teams for their work and thank the residents of West 123rd Street for their perseverance as we developed evidence in this case.”

	Indictments	Charges
1	Jonathan Alvarez; New York, NY; 6/26/1999	CSCS 3rd – 2 cts
2	Nana Poku; New York, NY; 1/6/1996	CSCS 3rd – 17 cts
3	Kerry Rainey; New York, NY; 1/21/1994	CSCS 3rd – 3 cts
4	Gary Reid; Haverstraw, NY; 4/23/1969	CSCS 3rd – 3 cts
5	Darren Squire; New York, NY; 12/26/1990	CSCS 3rd – 1 ct
6	Emmanuel Suce; New York, NY; 9/5/1987	CSCS 3rd – 8 cts

 The charges and allegations are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

1

Jonathan Alvarez; New York, NY; 6/26/1999

CSCS 3rd – 2 cts

2

Nana Poku; New York, NY; 1/6/1996

CSCS 3rd – 17 cts

3

Kerry Rainey; New York, NY; 1/21/1994

CSCS 3rd – 3 cts

4

Gary Reid; Haverstraw, NY; 4/23/1969

CSCS 3rd – 3 cts

5

Darren Squire; New York, NY; 12/26/1990

CSCS 3rd – 1 ct

6

Emmanuel Suce; New York, NY; 9/5/1987

CSCS 3rd – 8 cts

Dangerous Fentanyl Masked as Counterfeit Oxycodone: 20,000 Pills Seized in the Bronx and Manhattan

                  

New Yorkers Cautioned Against Purchasing Black Market Prescription Pills

  Bridget G. Brennan, New York City’s Special Narcotics Prosecutor, Ray Donovan, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) New York Division, New York City Police Commissioner James P. O’Neill and New York State Police Superintendent Keith M. Corlett announced the seizure of 20,000 pills of counterfeit oxycodone suspected to contain fentanyl and two kilograms of heroin (over 4 ½ pounds) over the past week as a result of two investigations. The pills carry a street value of up to $600,000. Counterfeit oxycodone pills containing fentanyl, a potentially lethal synthetic opioid, are increasingly appearing on the black market in New York City.

Four defendants are charged in criminal complaints filed by the Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor. The arrests are a result of two investigations by the New York Drug Enforcement Task Force (NYDETF) Group T-12, which is comprised of agents and officers from the DEA New York Division, the New York City Police Department (NYPD) and the New York State Police. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department assisted in the investigation.

On February 7, 2019, agents and officers were conducting surveillance as part of an ongoing investigation centered on a suspected narcotics trafficker, ANDRES REYES-MARTINEZ, when they observed him entering and exiting a cellphone store at 155-B West Kingsbridge Road in the Fordham Manor neighborhood of the Bronx.

The Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor secured a search warrant for the location and agents and officers entered the cellphone store at approximately 5:50 p.m.  REYES-MARTINEZ and a second individual, JESUS GARCIA, were the only people present inside the store at the time. GARCIA, the purported owner of the cellphone store, stood behind the counter and was in conversation with REYES-MARTINEZ.

Above the first floor retail area, agents and officers found a second floor storage area and recovered approximately 14,000 small blue tablets stamped “M30” that closely matched the color and markings of prescription oxycodone. The pills were split between 14 bags, each holding approximately 1,000 pills, and are suspected to contain fentanyl. Police also recovered two brick-shaped packages wrapped in duct tape, each weighing approximately one kilogram, containing a tan powdery substance with the characteristics and appearance of heroin. The store is located in a busy commercial area in close proximity to the Kingsbridge Armory.

Four days earlier, on February 3, 2019, agents and officers made a similar seizure after conducting surveillance on a livery car heading southbound on the FDR Drive. Agents and officers stopped the vehicle in which defendants DAVID ESPINAL and VICTOR ALMANZAR-CARDENAS were traveling in the vicinity of 1st Avenue and East 49th Street.

ESPINAL had a large object in his pocket and began flailing his arms, refusing to be handcuffed. Agents and officers recovered the object, which proved to be a large clear plastic bag containing approximately 6,000 pills. The pills were blue in color and were stamped “M30,” markings consistent with oxycodone. Subsequent laboratory analysis revealed that the pills contained fentanyl.

The fentanyl pills recovered in these investigations are believed to have originated in Mexico. A highly potent synthetic opioid, fentanyl is cheaper to obtain than pharmaceutical-grade opioid prescription pills and much more deadly.

Overdose deaths in New York City are at record-high levels and fentanyl is involved in more than half of these fatalities. A customer accustomed to taking oxycodone would not necessarily have the tolerance to be able to ingest fentanyl without suffering an overdose.

Black market 30 mg oxycodone pills can sell on the street for up to $30 each. At that price, the combined total number of pills recovered in these investigations could have carried a street value of up to $600,000.

Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget G. Brennan thanked her office’s Special Investigations Bureau (SIB), Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) New York Division, the New York City Police Department, the New York State Police and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Police Department.

“If you take ‘prescription’ pills that did not come directly from a pharmacy, you are risking your life,” said Special Narcotics Prosecutor Brennan.  “Throughout New York City, we have seen a spate of cases involving tens of thousands of potentially lethal fentanyl pills masquerading as oxycodone. Just because black market pills have the same color and design as legitimate pills, it does not mean they are safe.  The ingredients and potency are all unknown, and minuscule amounts of fentanyl can cause overdose or death. Consuming a counterfeit pill is akin to playing Russian Roulette.”

“These arrests highlight a growing trend in illicit street drugs which increases the risk of drug overdose,” said DEA Special Agent in Charge Ray Donovan. “Traffickers are mass producing pseudo-pharmaceutical pills made of heroin, fentanyl and other illicit drugs in makeshift laboratories throughout New York City.  These pills attract users because they are more convenient and less conspicuous; but users should beware because they are unregulated and lethal.  DEA and our law enforcement partners are committed to removing such threats and arresting drug dealers, traffickers and manufacturers.”

Police Commissioner James P. O’Neill said, “NYPD detectives continue to work tirelessly to hold those responsible who traffic opioids and fentanyl into our communities and contribute to related overdoses that have brought devastation to countless families. We will continue to work closely with our federal, state and local partners to stop this type of criminal activity. I commend the investigators who put themselves in harm’s way to remove these dangerous narcotics from the streets of New York.”

Acting New York State Police Superintendent Keith M. Corlett said, "I applaud the collaborative work of our New York State Police members and law enforcement partners at all levels for their relentless efforts to keep illegal drugs off our streets. These charges and the seizure of these lethal drugs are the result of their hard work and commitment to aggressively target and pursue criminals who perpetuate the distribution of these dangerous narcotics and the criminal activities associated with them. Together, we will continue to work diligently to prevent the flow of these illegal drugs into our communities before they threaten the safety and security of our neighborhoods.”

Defendants      and       Charges
Andres Reyes-Martinez; Bronx, NY; 3/5/1974 CPCS 1st – 2 cts; CPCS 3rd – 2 cts
Jesus Garcia; Bronx, NY; 4/5/1984 CPCS 1st – 2 cts; CPCS 3rd – 2 cts
David Espinal; New York, NY; 9/19/1992 CPCS 1st – 1 ct; CPCS 3rd – 2 cts; Resisting Arrest – 1 ct
Victor Almanzar-Cardenas; Boston, MA; 1/2/1980 CPCS 1st – 1 ct; CPCS 3rd – 1 ct

The charges and allegations are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Doctor Convicted In Manhattan Federal Court Of Nine Counts In Connection With Oxycodone And Fentanyl Diversion Scheme

  Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced the conviction yesterday of ERNESTO LOPEZ, a New York-licensed medical doctor who wrote thousands of medically unnecessary prescriptions for oxycodone and fentanyl over an approximately three-year period, following an eight-day trial before the Honorable Denise L. Cote.  LOPEZ was remanded into custody following his conviction.  Audra Baker, a medical assistant who worked in one of LOPEZ’s medical offices, and who was tried with LOPEZ, was acquitted of all charges against her.

U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman stated:  “As the jury unanimously recognized, Ernesto Lopez betrayed his patients and the public, peddling dangerous opioids to addicts and drug dealers for his own personal financial profit.  His flagrant drug dealing is all the more shocking coming as it did from a licensed medical professional who has taken an oath to do no harm to his patients.”

As reflected in the Indictment, documents previously filed in the case, and evidence introduced at trial:

From approximately 2015 until his arrest in November 2017, LOPEZ operated medical clinics in New York, New York, Jackson Heights, New York, and Franklin Square, New York, where LOPEZ, who purported to specialize in pain management, wrote thousands of prescriptions for oxycodone and fentanyl in exchange for cash payments.  In total, LOPEZ wrote prescriptions for nearly one million oxycodone pills, with a street value of approximately $20 million.  LOPEZ typically charged $200 to $300 in cash for patient visits, despite the fact that nearly 80 percent of his patients had health insurance.  During many patient visits, LOPEZ neither performed a meaningful physical examination of patients, nor attempted to diagnose them.  Instead, a typical such patient visit consisted primarily of recording a patient’s vital signs and sometimes involved the brief movement of a patient’s limbs.  LOPEZ then prescribed large quantities of oxycodone, most frequently 120 30-milligram tablets, and fentanyl patches. 

In addition to prescribing oxycodone and fentanyl patches to patients without a  legitimate medical need, LOPEZ also prescribed to many patients a fentanyl-based spray, called Subsys, which was intended to treat breakthrough cancer pain, for which those patients – many of whom did not have cancer – had no legitimate medical need.  In connection with these prescriptions, LOPEZ submitted an application to INSYS Therapeutics to join a so-called “speaker’s program,” where doctors received payments in exchange for prescribing the fentanyl-based spray to patients.

LOPEZ also provided loose oxycodone pills, without a prescription, directly to at least one patient on multiple occasions, instructed an employee to fill a prescription for oxycodone pills and then to give the pills to LOPEZ, and instructed the same employee to crush an oxycodone pill and put the resulting powder into a urine sample, so as to cheat a drug test.

At the time of LOPEZ’s arrest, law enforcement agents recovered, among other things, hundreds of fentanyl sprays and patches from his residence, along with approximately $729,000 in cash in boxes.

After the verdict was announced, Judge Cote said:  “Lives were destroyed and damaged.  People have suffered enormously because of what the doctor chose to do for those years.”

LOPEZ, 75, of Flushing, New York, was convicted of one count of conspiring to distribute oxycodone and fentanyl outside the usual course of professional practice and without legitimate medical need, and eight counts of distributing oxycodone outside the usual course of professional practice and without legitimate medical need.  Each count carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.  The maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by Judge Cote on June 11, 2019.   

Mr. Berman praised the outstanding investigative work of the Drug Enforcement Administration’s New York Tactical Diversion Squad.  Mr. Berman also thanked the New York City Police Department, the Department of Health and Human Services, the New York City Department of Investigation, the New York State Office of the Medicaid Inspector General, the New York City Human Resources Administration, the Nassau County Police Department and Asset Forfeiture Unit, the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office, the New York County District Attorney’s Office, and the New York State Department of Financial Services for their work on the investigation.

Parts of this case were conducted under the auspices of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a partnership between federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies.  The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle the most serious drug trafficking, weapons trafficking, and money laundering organizations and those primarily responsible for the nation’s illegal drug supply.