John Cerini Announces Candidacy for City Council District 13

  Local small business owner, John Cerini, announced his candidacy for New York City Council during the Bronx GOP’s field office open house at 3029 Middletown Road in Pelham Bay.  

Cerini, owner of the well-known business “Bronx Tax Man,” a family business serving the Bronx for 30 years, decided to enter the race after recently engaging in local community activism.  John has been a vocal opponent of the East Tremont Avenue “road diet” that took away a lane of traffic on each side of the vital roadway, causing needless traffic and longer commutes for residents.

Some other recent community involvement highlights by Cerini include founding the Throggs Neck Merchants Association, which is considered one of the best run in New York City.  John was also appointed to the New York State Insurance Department’s Special Panel for Homeowner’s Insurance by Senator Jeff Klein, which was considered by many a nod of gratitude and an acknowledgement of excellent service for John’s advocacy on behalf of City Island and Throggs Neck homeowners who were facing difficult business relations with their homeowner and flood insurance carriers.

A lifelong resident of Throggs Neck, John and his high school sweetheart turned wife, Grace, decided to stay in The Bronx to raise their four children in the only community they ever called home and loved.

“One of the many factors for deciding to enter this race is to make sure our Southeast Bronx neighborhoods remain a place my children will want to remain to raise my future grandchildren.”

“Therefore, fighting over-development will be one of my main campaign platform.  Those of us who have lived in the area for decades have seen firsthand the damage done by unscrupulous real estate developers.  Many local and city wide elected officials have not done enough to prevent the developers from over developing our area. Variances must be stopped from being the norm.”

“That is why we have seen so many single family lots turn into multifamily eyesores, why our streets are clogged with traffic and why our local police are stretched thin.  I will never put our community second.  Our residents and families deserve the best.” 

Bronx GOP’s Field Office Grand Opening/Open House at 3029 Middletown Road in Pelham Bay.

   Earlier thus afternoon the Bronx Republican Party held an open house at its headquarters at 3029 Middletown Road to show off the transition of a new county leaders, and several mayoral candidates. Mr. John Greany has retired as the Bronx Republican County Leader, and Mr. Michael Rendino has taken the helm as the new Bronx Republican County Leader. Some interesting guests dropped by as you will see in the photos below, and an announcement by a new candidate into the 13th City Council race. 

   New Republican County Leader Michael Rendino welcomed the rather large crowd, introduced the Bronx GOP new field director Mr. Robert Giuffre, and then welcomed some candidates for office including two Mayoral candidates.

Above - Possible mayoral candidate John Castimatidis stands outside the Bronx Republican headquarters between former Bronx Republican County Leader John Greany, and new Bronx Republican County Leader Michael Rendino.

Below - Mr. Castimatidis comes into the Bronx GOP office to shake hands, and say that he is exploring a possible run for mayor. He said that he should have a definite answer in a few weeks if he is going to run for mayor or not.

Above - Another major candidate seeking the Republican line for mayor  ex Jet football player Michael Faulkner came with several supporters to talk to the Bronx Republican Party.

Below - Mr. John Cerini explains the difficulty Businesses sand residents are having, and then announced his intention to seek the Republican line in the November general election for the 13th City Council district.

The Open House will continue Sunday from 11 AM - 3PM.

STATEMENT FROM MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO ON LUNAR NEW YEAR.

   "I wish all those celebrating across the Asian diaspora a happy and healthy Lunar New Year. As the proud city of immigrants, we cherish every opportunity to come together and embrace our city’s rich heritage. That is why we made Lunar New Year an official school holiday. While we celebrate on a Saturday this year, we hope everyone is able to share this special time with their loved ones. Happy year of the rooster, a symbol of hard work and diligence.”

Chinese:

我祝願所有慶祝農曆新年的亞裔人士新年快樂和健康。在這個令人自豪的移民城市，我們珍惜每一個讓大家一起迎接本市豐富傳統的機會。這就是我們爲什麽把農曆新年定為一個正式的學校假日。我們今年是在一個星期六慶祝這個節日，我們希望每一個人都能與其親人共度這個特別的時光。雄雞是刻苦努力的象徵，祝大家雞年愉快！

ASSEMBLYMAN LUIS SEPULVEDA ON MUSLIM BAN: "WHAT'S NEXT? MUSLIM INTERNMENT CAMPS? SO SHAMEFUL."

   Assemblyman Luis Sepulveda lashed out on Saturday, Jan. 28 over President Trump's executive order blocking the entry to the United States of citizens of seven predominantly Muslim countries, as well as other restrictions, and prioritizing   admitting Christian over Muslim refugees.

 "I never thought I would see this nation apply a religious test for anything. This is a ham-fisted attempt by Trump to disguise racism against Muslims. So shameful," said Sepulveda, whose Bronx district includes a large number of Muslims. "What's next? Muslim internment camps? So shameful."

 Trump’s order barred refugees from entering the United States for 120 days, barred Syrian refugees indefinitely, and blocked citizens from seven predominantly Muslim countries from entering for 90 days.

 Sepulveda noted that most of the 19 hijackers on the planes that crashed into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Shanksville, Pa., were from other Middle Eastern countries not placed on the visa ban list.

 "Even people with green cards, giving them legally permanent U.S. resident status, are included in the order, leaving many of them stranded because they may be visiting outside the country at the moment," the Assemblyman said.

 "There are better, saner, more humane ways to deal with this situation than with a blanket iron fist," said Sepulveda. "This is not who we are as a people, not who we are as a nation." 

Assemblyman Luis Sepulveda currently represents the 87th Assembly District covering Parkchester, Castle Hill, West Farms, Van Nest and Stratton Park.

Woman Convicted By Jury In Manhattan Federal Court Of Impersonating A Federal Official

Sandra Zongo Claimed to be the “Deputy Commissioner of Foreign Affairs” While Passing Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars in Fake Purchase Orders.

   Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and David E. Beach, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service New York Field Office (“USSS”), announced today that SANDRA ZONGO, a/k/a “Sandra Nelson,” a/k/a “Akiwa Gizzel,” was convicted today by a jury of impersonating an officer or employee of the United States, passing fictitious government obligations, wire fraud, and attempting to commit wire fraud in seeking benefits from the Human Resources Administration. ZONGO was convicted following a nine-day trial in Manhattan before U.S. District Judge Kimba M. Wood.

U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Today, a unanimous jury convicted Sandro Zongo of posing as a federal government employee and using fake documents to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars in goods and services from her victims. Claiming she was a Commissioner for a made-up organization with ties to the United Nations, Zongo defrauded hotels, restaurants and other vendors with fake invoices and went as far as defraud a charity for military veterans.”

Special Agent in Charge David Beach said: “The Secret Service places a priority on investigating criminals, who prey on the residents of this city and their businesses through deceit and false solicitations for real charities. Working with our partners with the NYPD to arrest these criminals and deter others from committing similar schemes, the Secret Service pursues complex crimes with significant community impact.”

According to the allegations in the Indictment, other documents publicly filed in Manhattan federal court, and the evidence introduced at trial:

In October 2014, the United States Secret Service began investigating ZONGO, who had been holding herself out as the “Deputy Commissioner” of the “Office of the Commissioner.” The “Office of the Commissioner” purported to be an “Intergovernmental Organization” and claimed to be funded by the federal government in doing work with the United Nations. In fact, the organization was not federally funded and had no affiliation with the United Nations. While purporting to be a “Deputy Commissioner,” ZONGO obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars in goods and services from hotels, restaurants, and other Manhattan vendors using fake government purchase orders, certificates of indebtedness, and other fraudulent documents. Among other things, ZONGO defrauded a charity holding an event designed to benefit injured veterans of $150,000.

While ZONGO was claiming to be the “Deputy Commissioner of Foreign Affairs,” she also submitted fraudulent documents to the Human Resources Administration in her application for housing benefits, including letters in which she claimed to be an “intern.”

ZONGO, 47, of New York, New York, was convicted of one count of passing fictitious obligations, which carries a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison; one count of impersonating an official or employee of the United States government, which carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison; one count of wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison; and one count of attempted wire fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.

Mr. Bharara praised the work of the United States Secret Service, and thanked the Criminal Investigators of the Southern District New York, the New York City Police Department, the Human Resources Administration, the United States Postal Service–Office of Inspector General, as well as the United States Postal Inspection Service.

Queens Man Sentenced To Life In Prison For Murder-For-Hire

   Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that JOSE LUIS GRACESQUI was sentenced today to life in prison after having been convicted at trial of conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire, murder-for-hire, and murder in connection with a narcotics conspiracy for his role in the murder of a 28-year-old Manhattan man in 1999. U.S. District Judge P. Kevin Castel, who presided over the three-week jury trial, imposed today’s sentence.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Thanks to the efforts of the dedicated agents, detectives, and prosecutors who never gave up, this cold-case murder of an innocent 28-year-old man has been solved and the perpetrator brought to justice. The person responsible for that murder has been sentenced to life in prison, bringing to a close this tragic and senseless crime. We hope this brings some measure of peace to Richard Diaz’s family.”

According to the evidence introduced at trial, other proceedings in this case, and documents previously filed in Manhattan federal court:

JOSE LUIS GRACESQUI, a/k/a “Luis Perez,” a/k/a “Ramon Ortiz,” a/k/a “Onel Colon,” a/k/a “Muffler,” was a member of a crew that committed violent robberies, kidnappings, and beatings of drug dealers. In the summer of 1999, GRACESQUI was hired by a major drug dealer in Upper Manhattan to kill one of the drug dealer’s customers (“Intended Victim-1”) after Intended Victim-1 and a number of his associates stole heroin from the drug dealer.

On the night of July 19, 1999, GRACESQUI and a member of his crew saw Intended Victim-1 in a car with another person and began following Intended Victim-1 through Manhattan. When the car with Intended Vicitm-1 stopped at a red light, GRACESQUI got out of the car that he had been in, approached the car with Intended Victim-1, and began shooting. The shots hit both Intended Victim-1 and the driver of the car, Richard Diaz. Richard Diaz was able to drive a short distance to the Henry Hudson Parkway, until Diaz lost consciousness and died. Intended Victim-1 sustained injuries but did not die.

GRACESQUI, 46, is from Queens, New York. Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the DEA and the NYPD.

Two Individuals Arrested And Charged In Manhattan Federal Court With Securities And Wire Fraud For Participating In A Multimillion-Dollar Ponzi Scheme

Steven Simmons and Joseph Meli Charged with Defrauding Investors and Diverting Fraudulent Proceeds For Their Own Use and to Further the Ponzi-Like Operation of a Hedge Fund

   Joon H. Kim, the Deputy United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney, Jr., the Assistant Director-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced today that STEVEN SIMMONS and JOSEPH MELI were arrested this morning on conspiracy, securities fraud, and wire fraud charges stemming from their participation in a scheme to defraud investors and provide those fraud proceeds to earlier investors in a hedge fund (the “Hedge Fund”). MELI is also charged with wire fraud in connection with a related fraudulent scheme in which MELI solicited investments through false representations that MELI had entered into an agreement to purchase tickets to a particular Broadway show (the “Show”), which MELI could then resell for a profit.

SIMMONS and MELI are expected to be presented today in Magistrate Court before the Honorable James C. Francis IV.

Deputy U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said: “As alleged, while soliciting funds from investors for legitimate-sounding investments, Steven Simmons and Joseph Meli were in fact running Ponzi schemes. Meli allegedly made up out of whole cloth purported deals to buy Broadway tickets that he could later sell at a profit. But as alleged, Meli was just robbing Peter to pay Paul. Thanks to the work of the FBI, the curtain has fallen on Simmons and Meli's alleged fraud scheme.”

FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William F. Sweeney Jr. said: “When fraudsters think they’re going to get away with scheming investors out of money, they tend to forget that at some point the money will run out. It’s the way a Ponzi scheme ends. At some point, the original investors will want to see returns on their investments, and they’re going to demand an explanation as to why there isn’t any money. The men arrested in this case even allegedly joked about the scheme, calling it a ‘shell game.’ This should serve as a warning to others playing the same games, at some point, the FBI and our law enforcement partners will discover the fraud and will make sure the criminals behind it are held accountable.”

According to the Complaint unsealed today in Manhattan federal court[1]:

Beginning in at least November 2015 through in or about January 2017, SIMMONS and MELI solicited investments by falsely representing to the investors that their funds would be used for legitimate, specified, investment purposes. SIMMONS represented that investor funds would be invested in securities by the Hedge Fund and MELI represented that investor funds would be used to purchase a large number of tickets for the Show which would then be resold by MELI for a profit. In fact, SIMMONS and MELI failed to invest the investor monies as promised, but rather used the money, in a Ponzi-like fashion, to fund the repayment of earlier investors in the Hedge Fund whose redemption requests could not be forestalled, and diverted investor monies to their own use.

Among other false and misleading statements, SIMMONS told one investor (“Victim Entity-1”) that its funds would be placed by the Hedge Fund with a highly successful group of portfolio managers, and provided performance information for these portfolio managers. In truth and in fact, SIMMONS solicited those investment funds from Victim Entity-1 for the purpose of repaying an earlier investor in the Hedge Fund that had demanded the return of its investment. Most of Victim Entity-1’s funds were, within minutes of their receipt by the Hedge Fund, wired to the earlier investor. The following day, $50,000 was wired by the Hedge Fund to an account controlled by SIMMONS. In a later consensually recorded conversation with a cooperating witness (the “CW”), SIMMONS expressed concern that Victim Entity-1 would contact the portfolio managers with whom it believed its funds were invested and learn that “there’s no . . . money.”

MELI also solicited at least three investors in a separate business run by MELI by falsely representing that he had entered into an agreement with the producer of the Show under which MELI would purchase a large number of tickets to the Show and then resell those tickets at a profit. MELI promised these investors a share in these profits. In truth and in fact, MELI had not entered into an agreement to purchase tickets to the Show but rather diverted investor money to his own personal use, including spending more than $200,000 at a luxury car dealership, and used investor monies to repay earlier investors in both his own Ponzi-like ticket resale scheme and the Hedge Fund. In later consensually recorded conversations with the CW, MELI discussed his “fraudulent ticket deal” and described playing a “shell game” with investor monies.

SIMMONS, 48, of Wilton, Connecticut, and MELI, 42, of Manhattan, were arrested this morning. SIMMONS is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and wire fraud, one count of securities fraud, and one count of wire fraud. MELI is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and wire fraud, one count of securities fraud, and two counts of wire fraud. The conspiracy count carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The securities fraud count carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $5 million, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The wire fraud count carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. The maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencings of the defendants will be determined by the judge.

Mr. Kim praised the work of the FBI and thanked the Securities and Exchange Commission for its assistance. He added that the investigation is continuing.

The charges were brought in connection with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices, and state and local partners, it is the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets; and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Since fiscal year 2009, the Justice Department has filed over 18,000 financial fraud cases against more than 25,000 defendants. For more information on the task force, please visitwww.StopFraud.gov.

This case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elisha J. Kobre is in charge of the prosecution.

The allegations contained in the Complaint are merely accusations, and the defendant ispresumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

 

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[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint, and the description of the Complaint set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.

STATEMENT FROM MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO ON PRESIDENTIAL EXECUTIVE ORDER REGARDING REFUGEES AND IMMIGRATION

  “As an American and the grandson of immigrants I am profoundly saddened by the President’s Executive Order on immigration issued today. The United States has been a beacon of hope to the world. We are a country founded on the belief of religious pluralism and equality. Today the President sent a shamefully different message. He has temporarily suspended nearly all refugee admissions, indefinitely banned refugee admissions from Syria, and imposed a 90-day ban on all immigration from a number of Muslim-majority countries. These policies do not reflect the values of the United States or of New York City. We must continue to embrace refugees in need who are victims of terror, not terrorists. We must protect and celebrate religious pluralism. In this great city of immigrants we will remain true to our values and always welcome all who yearn to breathe free.”