After NYCHA Extortion
Take Down Villanueva Asked
for Contractor Phones Now
Pleads Guilty
by
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book
Substack
SDNY
COURTHOUSE,
Oct 24 – For days Inner City
Press had heard from its
sources there would be a
"takedown" on February 6, each
SDNY Magistrate Judge would
handle seven to 10 defendants.
Arrests happen at
6 am. So at 5:55 am Inner City
Press tweeted it, first to X
subscribers with the spoiler
alert: the expectation was
that each of the current or
former NYCHA employees would
be released on bond the same
day.
And then hours
later at 9:39 am the
prosecutors announced it.
Media rushed around reporting
it. Inner City Press had
it first, and after discretely
waiting, published it first.
Then this thread of
presentments, here.
On May 7, amid
guilty pleas by others, Vernon
Chambers pled guilty - to a
misdemeanor; the Information
lists $5,500 in bribes for
contracts worth $24,000. His
sentencing control date is
August 20.
On June 14, Inner
City Press went to cover the
case of a defendant who has
not pled guilty. Frankie
Villanueva is charged with
taking $50,000 in bribes from
"four or five contactors," the
AUSA said, worth $200,000. The
AUSA said he will get contents
of the phones of 10 or more
contractors.
Jump cut to
October 24, when after another
NYCHA defendant had a motion
to dismiss under Snyder
dismissed, Villanueva pled
guilty to a superseding
indictment.
That case is US
v. Villaneuva, 24-cr-366
(Engelmayer)
Watch this
site - and these feeds: X
and X
for subscribers.
And Substack here
***
Your
support means a lot. As little as $5 a month
helps keep us going and grants you access to
exclusive bonus material on our Patreon
page. Click
here to become a patron.
Feedback:
Editorial [at] innercitypress.com
SDNY Press Room 480, front cubicle
500 Pearl Street, NY NY 10007 USA
Mail: Box 20047, Dag
Hammarskjold Station NY NY 10017
Reporter's mobile (and weekends):
718-716-3540
Other, earlier Inner City Press are
listed here,
and some are available in the ProQuest
service, and now on Lexis-Nexis.
Copyright 2006-2024 Inner City
Press, Inc. To request reprint or other
permission, e-contact Editorial [at]
innercitypress.com
|