RETIRED PRIEST INDICTED FOR HAVING CHILD PORNOGRAPHY ON HIS COMPUTER

Onetime Archdiocese Chancellor Allegedly Viewed Images on Computer at Retirement Home

  Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark today announced that a retired Catholic priest has been indicted for possessing pornographic images of girls as young as eight years old on his computer which he allegedly viewed in front of many individuals at his retirement home in the Bronx. 

  District Attorney Clark said, “This investigation by the Economic Crimes Bureau found that the defendant had dozens of photographs on his computer of girls ages eight to 14 years old performing sex acts with men or posing naked. People at the defendant’s residence were subjected to it when they entered his room. Anyone who views child pornography supports horrific child exploitation.” 

  District Attorney Clark said that Monsignor Harry J. Byrne, 96, who resides at the St. John Vianney Center for Retired Priests in the Bronx operated by the Archdiocese of New York, was indicted on 37 counts of Possessing an Obscene Sexual Performance by a Child and 37 counts of Possessing a Sexual Performance by a Child. He was arraigned today before Bronx Supreme Court Justice Robert Neary and released. He is due back in court on January 17, 2018. If convicted of the top charge, he could face up to four years in prison and would have to register as a sex offender.

  The investigation began about five months ago when officials at the residence notified the Bronx District Attorney’s Office after receiving complaints about Byrne. According to the investigation, the defendant sought out the images of young girls using Google and Bing. Detectives from the NYPD Computer Crimes Squad conducted a forensic examination of his computer and found at least 37 images of child pornography.

  District Attorney Clark thanked the NYPD Computer Crimes Squad for their assistance in the case, as well as the Bronx DA Detective Investigators. 

An indictment is an accusatory instrument and not proof of a defendant’s guilt.

BRONX DISTRICT ATTORNEY DARCEL D. CLARK ANNOUNCES RESULTS OF INVESTIGATION INTO ALLEGATIONS AGAINST FORMER PASTOR

Over $22,000 in Parish Accounts Improperly Reimbursed to Fr. Peter Miqueli for Personal Expenses

  Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark today announced that an extensive investigation into allegations against the former pastor of a Bronx church has found that he was improperly reimbursed for over $22,000 in personal expenses from the parish account.

  The investigation also revealed that the parish did not comply with certain financial controls mandated by the Archdiocese of New York, and the Archdiocese did not scrutinize the finances of the parish to ensure it was in compliance. The District Attorney’s Office has made recommendations to the parish and the Archdiocese to ensure that proper financial controls are in place. The Archdiocese has reimbursed St. Frances de Chantal Church for the funds paid to Father Miqueli. No criminal charges will be filed. 

   District Attorney Clark said, “This investigation by the Economic Crimes Bureau found that Father Miqueli was improperly reimbursed for personal expenses. The Archdiocese has reimbursed St. Frances de Chantal Church for the funds, $22,450 of hard-earned money donated by parishioners for the betterment of the parish. We have made recommendations to the Archdiocese and they have agreed to more oversight.”

  District Attorney Clark said all allegations of criminal behavior alleged to have been committed by Father Miqueli, including that he misappropriated or stole millions of dollars from the parish over a period of several years, were investigated and the allegations of criminal conduct were found to be unsubstantiated. The funds that were improperly reimbursed to Father Miqueli are now being paid back to the parish, taken from sustenance funds that, under Canon Law, were due to Father Miqueli. In effect, this means that Father Miqueli is repaying the $22,450 to the Parish.

  In addition, in the course of its investigation, the Bronx District Attorney’s Office has identified certain important financial and business controls and best practices, many of which are mandated in the Archdiocesan Financial Policies and Procedures Manual (“Manual”) that were not being followed by the parish. The Bronx District Attorney’s made the following recommendations:

1. The Parish must undergo a complete audit and should be audited regularly, and no less than every 3 years. Further, an audit should be conducted whenever a pastor is about to leave the Parish and before a new pastor is assigned; 

2. The Parish’s budget must be submitted by March 15th every year; 

3. The Parish may only have a single general purpose credit card which must have the pastor’s name and the name of the Parish on it, and be used only for Parish expenses; 

4. Weekly collections must be secured in sealed security bags, stored in a safe or lock box, counted by an accounting team of no less than two individuals and must be handled at all times in a manner consistent with the Manual prior to deposit in the bank; 

5. The weekly collection and the Parish’s annual financial statement must be published in the Parish’s bulletin; 

6. A Parish Finance Council, formed from parishioners with fiscal acumen and knowledge of the Parish, must be operational and fully informed of all finances of the Parish; 

7. The pastor and the Parish manager must be trained in the Parish SOFT (formerly “LOGOS”) system of accounting; 

8. The Parish must have two lay trustees who are long-time parishioners and familiar with Parish finances; 

9. There must be a Parish Council; 

10. There must be an annual meeting of the officers of the Parish Corporation; 

11. Only an approved accountant may be used by the Parish and such accountant cannot also serve as the personal accountant for the pastor or any employee of the Parish;

12. Regular operational reviews must be conducted during which every expense incurred by the Parish and its employees, must be examined and reconciled by the parish Finance Council; 

13. All internal controls set forth in the Manual must be fully implemented and operational and must remain in place.

Senator Klein, Assemblyman Dinowitz & Council Member Cohen successful in push for better lighting at Riverdale site where 9/11 memorial plaque was stolen

After Senator Jeff Klein, Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz and Council Member Andrew Cohen wrote a joint letter to the city Department of Transportation requesting the agency conduct a lighting study in a Riverdale community garden where numerous 9/11 memorials have been stolen since June, the agency is taking action.

DOT’s Street Lighting Division concluded in a survey that the area did indeed lack sufficient lighting. DOT informed the elected officials that they would be installing additional street lighting at West 253rd Street and Fieldston Road in order to correct this issue. In all, six new street light brackets will be installed at that intersection in the vicinity of the community garden. Four existing street light brackets at the intersection will also be replaced with new LED lights.

“I want to applaud the New York City Department of Transportation for quickly determining that additional street lighting is warranted around Endor Community Gardens. The thefts over the summer of several 9/11 memorials were utterly disrespectful to the victims, their families and our community. I’m confident that these new measures will increase safety and help prevent future crimes from occurring in the area,” said Senator Jeff Klein.  

“The Endor Community Garden is a beautiful nook in our neighborhood that local residents have worked very hard to maintain and preserve to honor police officers and firefighters killed in the 9/11 attacks. This beautiful memorial has been vandalized on more than one occasion and we must take action to make sure this does not happen again. Providing better lighting discourages vandalism and so I am thankful that the DOT is taking the necessary steps to correct this problem,” said Assemblyman Dinowitz

“A memorial honoring the lives lost in 9/11 is especially sacred and should  never be tampered with,” said Council Member Andrew Cohen. “These new measures will help deter any future act of vandalism in the area.  I applaud the Department of Transportation for taking the issue seriously and taking the proper next steps.”

The thefts at Endor Community Gardens occurred over a span of several weeks this summer. A plaque honoring local police officers and firefighters killed in the Sept. 11 terror attacks was the first memorial taken. A local resident temporary replaced the plaque with American flags, but those too were taken on five separate occasions.

The elected officials sent their joint letter in September, and the DOT concluded their lighting survey about a month later.

Friends of VCP's November Events

Fall Wetland Volunteer Day
Saturday November 4th meeting at 10am
Did you know there are only 98 acres of freshwater wetlands left in the Bronx and 56 of them are in Van Cortlandt Park? Volunteers will help with native species planting, removal of non-native invasive plants and trash clean up within Tibbetts Wetlands. Meet inside the park near the last stop of the 1 train at Broadway and W. 242nd Street.

Volunteer Trails Restoration CrewSaturday November 4th from 10am to 3pm
Crew Members will work alongside trails professionals, developing skills in various areas of trail construction while improving the various trails in Van Cortlandt Park.  Projects include building boardwalks, clearing waterbars and drainage swells and installing drainage dips.  No prior trails experience is necessary; all training will be offered in an on-the-job format.  Interested? Contact john@vancortlandt.org for more information. Must be 18 years of age to join.

Woodlawn Playground BeautificationSaturday November 4th from 10:30am to 1pmJoin the Friends and the Women of Woodlawn as we continue our efforts to beautify the area around Woodlawn Playground. Meet at Van Cortlandt Park East and just south of Kepler Avenue.

Get Active Hiking Series in VCPSaturday November 18th meeting at 10am, Seven Wonders of VCP Tour.  Please wear appropriate shoes and bring plenty of water and a snack for hike. meet at FVCP Compost Site- enter the Park at Broadway and Mosholu Ave.

End of Season CelebrationSaturday November 18th from 10am to 1pmHelp with our final harvest to prepare the garden and compost bins for the winter through adding collected leaves and food scraps.  Projects suitable for all ages.  Volunteers will get a final chance to taste some of the produce from our garden.  Meet at FVCP’s Compost Site- enter the Park at Broadway and Mosholu Ave.

Friends of Van Cortlandt Park

vancortlandt.org

718-601-1553

info@vancortlandt.org

80 Van Cortlandt Park South Ste. E1

Bronx, NY 10463

FOLLOWING DEADLY NEW YORK TERROR ATTACK, COUNCIL TRANSPORTATION CHAIR YDANIS RODRIGUEZ TO CALL ON NYC TO INSTALL MORE SAFETY BOLLARDS

  Tomorrow, Thursday, November 2nd  at 12:00 pm Noon on the steps of City Hall, Council Transportation Chair Ydanis Rodriguez, elected officials, and transportation advocates will call on the City of New York to install pedestrian safety bollards along sidewalks in key areas with high pedestrian volume and other pedestrian safety measures to prevent potential attacks in NYC.

Council Member Rodriguez is the sponsor of  Introduction 1658 that would require the installation of bollards in front of schools, plazas and vision zero priority corridors, however, the call will be to begin installation now before the legislation goes to a vote.

The heightened urgency of protecting pedestrians comes after a driver identified as Sayfullo Saipov, 29, ran down a bike lane in a rented Home Depot pickup truck killing nine people and injuring eleven. There have similar attacks in France, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Times Square where vehicles have been used a weapons.

MAYOR DE BLASIO, POLICE COMMISSIONER O’NEILL AND GOVERNOR CUOMO HOLD MEDIA AVAILABILITY ON TERRORIST ATTACK

  Police Commissioner James P. O’Neill: Good afternoon everybody. Just keep in mind that this incident occurred a little more than two hours ago so all the information that we are giving you right now is preliminary and subject to change.

After I speak you are going to hear from Governor Cuomo and Mayor de Blasio.

First, I just want to say that today there was a loss of innocent life in Lower Manhattan. The dead and injured were just going about their days, heading home from work or from school, or enjoying the afternoon sun on bicycles. This is a tragedy of the greatest magnitude for many people, for many families here in New York City and beyond today.

I want to commend the response of our NYPD officer that was on post near the location who stopped the carnage moments after it began. And also work, the work of the first responders, including the Fire Department and the EMS personal surely helped save additional lives.

As I said I will give more of a chronology in a couple of minutes, but right now I would like to introduce Mayor de Blasio.

Mayor Bill de Blasio: Thank you Commissioner. It’s a very a painful day in our city – horrible tragedy on the West side. Let me be that clear based on the information we have at this moment, this was act of terror. And a particularly cowardly act of terror aimed at innocent civilians, aimed at people going about their lives who had no idea what was about to hit them.

We at this moment, based on the information we have, we know of eight innocent people who have lost their lives and over a dozen more injured. We know that this action was intended to break our spirit but we also know New Yorkers are strong, New Yorkers are resilient. And our spirit will never be moved by an act of violence, an act meant to immediate us.

We have been tested before as a city very near the site of today’s tragedy. And New Yorkers did not give in in the face of these kinds of actions. We will respond as we always do. We will be undeterred. And I want to thank everyone at the NYPD, all our first responders for their extraordinary efforts in the midst of this tragedy, starting with the officer who stopped this tragedy from continuing – all the first responders who came to the aid of those who were injured.

An investigation is under way to get all the facts and what we will tell you today will of course be preliminary. But we know we will get down to the bottom of what happened. I want to ask all New Yorkers, all Americans to keep the families of those lost in your thoughts and prayers. They will need our support.

And I want to ask all New Yorkers to be vigilant. We know it’s Halloween night. And we know in the days ahead people will be uneasy. We ask all New Yorkers to live by the idea – if you see something, say something – tell an officer immediately if you see anything unusual, anything that worries you. Be vigilant and know that there will be extensive additional employments of NYPD officers this evening and throughout the days ahead.

We will also keep you posted as this investigation continues and as the NYPD gains more information. Governor Cuomo.

Governor Andrew Cuomo: Thank you. First, our thoughts and prayers with those New Yorkers who we lost today – it reminds us all how precious life is. They left the house this morning – they were enjoying the beautiful Westside of Manhattan on a beautiful fall day and they are not going to be returning home. And that shock and that pain is going to be very real. And our thoughts [inaudible] our prayers are with all of them.

Our first responders did an extraordinary job. The NYPD, the FDNY, the FBI, the New York State Police, EMS – they, we have the finest security on the globe and to see them in action today proved that once again.

The new terrorist tactic which they have called for publicly, are these lone wolves who commit an act of terror. This is all very preliminary – it’s only been a couple of hours. But at this point, there’s no evidence to suggest a wider plot or a wider scheme, but the actions of one individual who meant to cause pain and harm and probably death, and the resulting terror, and that was the purpose. 

We will be vigilant – more police everywhere, you’ll see them in the airports, you’ll see them in the tunnels. It’s not because there’s any evidence of any ongoing threat or any additional threat, it is just out of vigilance and out of caution. And the truth is, New York is an international symbol of freedom and democracy – that’s what we are – and we are proud of it. That also makes us a target for those people who oppose those concepts, and we’ve lived with this before, we’ve felt the pain before, we feel the pain today, but we go forward together and we go forward stronger than ever. 

We’re not going to let them win, and if we change our lives, we contort ourselves to them, then they win and we lose. We’ll go about our business – again, there’s no ongoing threat, there’s not evidence of that at this time. So, there’s no reason to have any undue anxiety. You will see more security forces, but that’s only because it’s an abundance of caution and not a signal of anything else. And there will be continued investigation and justice will be done. But again, to those we lost – they’re in our thoughts and our prayers. 

To the first responders, thank you, thank you, thank you for the job you do. You put your life one the line every day. You do it better than anyone else. And to New Yorkers – be New Yorkers and live your life and don’t let them change us or deter us in any manner, shape, or form.

Commissioner O’Neill: Thanks, Governor Cuomo. Thank you, Mr. Mayor. As I said, I’m going to go through the chronology here. And I know when I’m done, you’re going to have a lot of questions, but we’re not going to go too deep into it, it’s only two hours. And after I get done with the chronology, Dan Nigro is going to talk about the injuries. 

It’s about 3:05 pm, a male driving a rented Home Depot pickup truck entered the West Side Highway bicycle path at Houston Street, began driving southbound, striking a number of pedestrians and bicyclists along the route. At Chambers Street, the truck collided with a school bus, injuring two adults and two children. After the collision, the driver of the truck – a 29-year-old male – exited the vehicle, brandishing two handguns. The uniformed police officer assigned to the 1st Precinct, confronted the subject and shot him in the abdomen. The subject was wounded and transported to a local hospital. A paintball gun and a pellet gun were recovered at the scene. The subject’s identity is not being released at this time pending further investigation. At this point, there are eight fatalities reported in connection with this incident. In addition, several people have been injured and Commissioner Nigro from our Fire Department will discuss that. 

Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro: Thank you, Jim. As the Police Commissioner said, six people died – they were pronounced at the scene between Houston Street and Chambers Street. They were all males. Two others were transported in traumatic arrest and were pronounced at the hospital. We also transported 11 people, all with serious but, at this moment, not life-threatening injuries. The injuries are what you may expect as a truck went at high speed down that bicycle path and struck bicyclists and pedestrians. There may be more injuries as people self-evacuated and we will determine that later as we do our survey. But that’s the patient count and the deaths as we know it now. 

Deputy Commissioner John Miller, Intelligence and Counter-terrorism, NYPD: So, as you know, through the SHIELD program, we do a very wide outreach. We have just under 20,000 members in the private sector. After ISIS, [inaudible] magazine came out with the issue just about two years ago around this time of year suggesting car attacks. You’ll recall, one of the targets they suggest was the Thanksgiving Day Parade. We went and did extensive outreach to the truck rental business. We visited over 148 truck rental locations in this area. The obvious ones – U-Haul, Ryder, Home Depot, etcetera, and talked about suspicious indicators, ways to come forward. After attacks on the German Christmas market, after Nice, we repeated those visits two more times either by making telephonic contact, email, or going back to the same places. So, the industry has had a high level of awareness on this matter from the NYPD.

Commissioner O’Neill: The incident is over. It did end right by Stuyvesant High School, so we had to make sure all the kids were taken care of, and we held them in place for a while, and it was important we do that, but this incident is over. He’s a 29-year-old male, he did make a statement when he exited the vehicle. And if you just look at the M-O of the attack – that’s consistent with what’s been going on. So, that, along with the statement that’s enabled us to label this a terrorist event. 

Mayor Bill de Blasio:  I’ll just close this off here by saying look, the NYPD is investigating this with our federal partners, with our State partners. There’s going to be a very, very thorough investigation, but the most important thing – as Governor Cuomo said, as Chief O’Neill said – people should go about their business knowing the NYPD is out in force with our partner agencies tonight and throughout the week. Very important additional measures are going to be taken for people’s safety, but the bottom line is we are going to go about our business in the city, and we are not going to be deterred. 

MAYOR DE BLASIO DOUBLES PLANNED SENIOR HOUSING TO 30,000 AFFORDABLE HOMES

“Seniors First,” 3^RD initiative of expanded 300,000-home housing plan, will make 15,000 more homes age-friendly,’ build state-of-the-art senior buildings, protect existing senior developments

  Mayor Bill de Blasio today announced “Seniors First,” a slate of new affordable housing programs that will increase the amount of senior housing across the city. In total, the City will double its commitment to senior housing over the extended 12-year Housing New York plan, serving 30,000 senior households by 2026.    

The number of seniors in New York is projected to grow 40 percent by 2040. To meet the housing needs of older New Yorkers on fixed incomes, the City will invest $150 million to make more homes accessible to seniors and people with disabilities; build new 100 percent affordable developments on underused NYCHA, and public and private sites; and preserve aging senior housing built as part of HUD’s 202 program.

As an immediate step, the City will seek proposals for 100-pecent affordable senior buildings totaling 300 new homes on three underused NYCHA sites at Sotomayor, Bushwick II (Group E), and Baruch Houses.

“The federal government has gotten out of the business of building senior housing, so New York City is jumping into it in a big way. We won’t let seniors be pushed out of the neighborhoods they helped build,” said Mayor de Blasio.

Along with the Neighborhood Pillars program and the Mitchell-Lama Reinvestment Program, “Seniors First” is the third new initiative announced as part of the Mayor’s plan to accelerate the creation and preservation of affordable housing across the city by financing 200,000 affordable homes by 2022, and expand that goal to 300,000 affordable homes by 2026 – enough to house the entire population of Boston.

“Seniors First” is needed to address the shortage of affordable housing for low-income seniors, who are the most rent-burdened and more likely to live on fixed-incomes than other New York City populations.

Through a multi-pronged strategy, the City will serve 25,000 senior households—in addition to the 5,000 already reached, through:

15,000 Age-Friendly Homes: The City is making a $150 million new commitment to address the needs of senior residents in buildings preserved over the next eight years. HPD will conduct assessments of the apartments it preserves with residents 62 or older, and make that housing accessible through improvements such as installing lever door handles and shower bars and widening doors to make bathrooms and kitchens wheelchair-friendly. These improvements will ensure seniors can age in place and retain their mobility as they age.

4,000 New Senior Apartments: HPD is committed to developing 4,000 new affordable senior homes through its Senior Affordable Rental Apartments Program. Of the total under the Mayor’s housing plan, about 1,000 will now be constructed on a dedicated pipeline of underused NYCHA land. They will be developed in addition to the existing 10,000 affordable apartments already planned through NextGen NYCHA’s 100% affordable program.

6,000 Senior Apartments Protected: For decades, the federal government built hundreds of senior housing developments across the city through the HUD 202 program. These buildings are privately owned and operated, and many face physical deterioration that threatens their continued affordability. The City will target those properties most in need of protection, making repairs and providing long-term financing in exchange for continued affordability.

“As we accelerate and expand our work through Housing New York, we must put our seniors first. Today, we are doubling our initial commitment to senior housing and introducing a three-fold strategy to deliver on this critical priority. Through a new program to make senior homes more accessible in the buildings we rehab across the city, a targeted focus on protecting the existing stock of senior buildings, and a dedicated pipeline of underused NYCHA land for new affordable senior housing, we are operating on all cylinders to serve the seniors who helped build our great city,” said Housing Preservation and Development Commissioner Maria Torres-Springer. “I want to thank the Mayor, NYCHA Chair Shola Olatoye, HDC President Eric Enderlin, and all my colleagues across City government for their partnership to keep our seniors in safe, quality, affordable housing.” 

NEWS FROM CONGRESSMAN ELIOT ENGEL

Engel Statement on First Indictments From Mueller Investigation

  Congressman Eliot L. Engel, the Ranking Member on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued the following statement on the Federal indictments of Paul Manafort, Rick Gates, and George Papadopoulos in conjunction with the Robert Mueller investigation:

"The charges against President Trump's former campaign manager Paul Manafort are deadly serious and point to close and possibly illegal ties between foreign countries and the person Trump hand-picked to lead his run for the White House. Furthermore, the guilty plea from a Trump aide revealed today shows that at least one person in the President's inner circle was in contact with Russians and tried to cover it up by lying to the FBI.

"We need to know everything that has occurred here; no stone can be left unturned. That's why Mr. Mueller's investigation must proceed unimpeded. If the President fires Mr. Mueller or pardons anyone in exchange for their silence, we will find ourselves in a constitutional crisis rivaling Watergate. 

"I also believe it is imperative that we convene an independent commission—one that is separate and apart from the politics of the Justice Department and Congress—to investigate the possible collusions between the Trump campaign and the Kremlin. Clearly, Vladimir Putin and his cronies worked hard to tip the scales of our election. For the sake of protecting our electoral process and its integrity going forward, we need the extent of their meddling to be made clear and devise ways to prevent future attacks on our democracy."

Engel Statement On District Court Blocking Part of President Trump’s Ban on Transgender Service Members

  Congressman Eliot L. Engel, a top member on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, issued the following statement on today’s ruling by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issuing a preliminary injunction to block President Trump’s ban on transgender service members in the military:

“The President’s announcement banning transgender American’s from serving in the military was a hateful and discriminatory slap in the face to the thousands of transgender service members who have volunteered their lives to protect our freedom. I’m pleased to hear that Judge Kollar-Kotelly’s injunction will prevent this administration from discharging brave service members while these cases make their way through the courts.

“This ruling is a victory for equality. All Americans, regardless of gender identity, should be able to serve their country. I hope today’s decision will ultimately derail this shortsighted decree by the President.”