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By Matthew Russell Lee, Exclusive Patreon

SDNY COURTHOUSE, July 1 – While many, even most cases in the Magistrates Court of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York are sealed, on July 2 a presentment of an NYPD officer, Eduardo Rodriguez, was announced in advance by the U.S. Attorney's Office. When Rodriguez with tattoo-ed arms was brought up and quickly bailed, there were more people in the Mag court than usual.

The only thing unusual was his Federal Defender lawyer objecting to, and successfully, the exclusion of time under the Speedy Trial Act.  Rodriguez is to turn in his passport to Pre-Trial Services in White Plains on July 8, and appear before SDNY District Judge William Pauley III on July 9 at 2 pm. Inner City Press will be there.

 One other perhaps unusual fact: while ordered to turn in any guns, the government said this police officer has no guns. 

For now, here's from what the U.S. Attorney says: "In June 2017, RODRIGUEZ agreed with at least two other individuals (identified in the Superseding Indictment as CC-1 and CC-2) to submit an application to a lending institution (“Lender-1”) for an automobile loan for the express – but false – purpose of financing RODRIGUEZ’s purchase of a vehicle from a real automobile dealer that RODRIGUEZ did not own and never intended to own. 

In connection with that application, Lender-1 issued to RODRIGUEZ a loan (“Loan-1”) and, specifically, a check representing the proceeds of that loan.  RODRIGUEZ, in turn, endorsed that check and provided it to CC-1 and CC-2 with the understanding they would deposit and withdraw money against that check for RODRIGUEZ’s enrichment.     In March 2018, USPIS inspectors interviewed RODRIGUEZ, and he falsely denied any involvement in applying for, or any knowledge about, Loan-1.      In April 2018, RODRIGUEZ was again interviewed by federal law enforcement officers.  Although RODRIGUEZ admitted during that interview that he did, in fact, endorse the check issued in connection with Loan-1, RODRIGUEZ claimed to have endorsed the check and provided it to CC-1 and CC-2 for the purpose of CC-1 and/or CC-2 returning the check to Lender-1.  That statement was false: as noted, RODRIGUEZ endorsed the check not for the purpose of returning it to Lender-1 but to obtain proceeds from Loan-1.  Similarly, although RODRIGUEZ admitted during the April 2018 interview that he did, in fact, work with CC-1 to obtain Loan-1, RODRIGUEZ denied any previous relationship with CC-1, stating in substance and in part that CC-1 had contacted RODRIGUEZ without any prior prompting by RODRIGUEZ.  That statement was false: RODRIGUEZ had a prior business relationship with CC-1 dating back to at least December 2015 and had been in substantial telephone contact long before when he claimed he first met CC-1... The prosecution of this case is being handled by the Office’s General Crimes Unit.  Assistant United States Attorney Daniel H. Wolf is in charge of the prosecution. "

Meanwhile three more grand jury indictments were signed off on by Judge Moses on July 1: US v Carroll, assigned to Judge Vernon Broderick, and US v. Minaya, Assigned to Chief Judge McMahon via Wheel A (there was a control date on July 2 for a 10 am proceeding which never occurred). The third grand jury indictment, which involved warrants, was declared fully sealed. Inner City Press asked in two placed, at least as to which judge it was wheeled out to, without success. Inner City Press will have more on this, the sealing of warrant information by SDNY even later in cases.

There was also "ALDE KAZEEM SODIQ    FRAUD    19-cr-462."

   Inner City Press went to the Mag court and heard that while notice had been given to a consular officer of the country of which Sodiq is a national, Nigeria, his Federal Defender lawyer on the record accused the government of questioning after she had met with him on Saturday, June 29, in violation of US v. Miranda. He is charged with, among other offenses, money laundering. His Federal Defender, at this stage, did not push further. But shouldn't there be an inquiry? Watch this site.
For further example, "STEVEN HALL    EXTRADITION    19-mj-5949."

  Inner City Press went to cover the Mag Court and found that this was no extradiction from New York to another state, but to France. Steven Hall appeared in a white t-shirt and told Judge Moses he needed only a stand-by French translator. There were no fewer than three lawyers-only sessions behind closed door, subsequently explained as involving only "procedural" issues like if this could even be done without the involvement of a District Judge. (Just after, three grand jury indictments were signed, one of them fully sealed along with warrants).

   Hall was charged by a French investigative judge with aggravated assault and home invasion. He consented to detention, with an extradition hearing set for July 16 - two days after Bastille Day...

  The last presentment of July 1, a Modesto Arias Soto, had been arrested on West 105th Street. There was some questioning of whether he was entitled to a free Federal Defender - Judge Moses approved it but said it might be revoked. He was released on a $25,000 bond with a preliminary hearing set for July 31.

The penultimate, a Mr. Nunez, had been sent by the Federal court in Maine to a halfway house in The Bronx from which he got thrown out. He was released on $10,000 bond; his report was presented to the lawyers only behind closed doors. And so it goes in the SDNY Murky Mag Court.

  Cynthia Jordan, now 61, was arrested in March for stealing from the Wall Street firm in which she worked in the accounting department, to the tune of $688,142. Only $73,000 of this was by wire transfers, it emerged in the Mag Court with Inner City Press the only media present. There were also 59 false overtime payments, 111 paychecks and other hard copy checks. But it's all under wire fraud. The maximum sentence in 20 years in prison but there is a plea agreement, with the sentencing set for October 3. Inner City Press will continuing to follow this and other Mag Court cases.   u

    On June 25 Magistrate Judge Lehrburger ordered detained a defendant named Martinez charged with 33 kilograms of cocaine, a first name - Eliot - and a case number were provided: 19-mj-5950.

  But by 5 pm, even after Judge Lehrburger had detained Mr. Martinez and set a July 8 hearing, PACER said "Cannot find case 19-mj-5950." So Inner City Press reports: Judge Lehrburger said he did not find a risk of flight, but given the heavy weight of coke, and that Martinez violated the terms of his probation in New Jersey, he would be detained. This came four hours after an appearance before Judge Castel of a defendant accused of offenses against children, a defendant who unlike Martinez was allowed free on bond, to his mother's house in Freehold, New Jersey... 

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