In
SDNY Bob King Wants To Cross
Examine MCC Dr Jenkins Who
Said He Is Sane But She Is Off
By Matthew
Russell Lee, SDNYLIVE
SDNY COURTHOUSE,
May 17 – A man known as Bob
King but also other names,
charged with firing a gun in a
bodega on White Plains Road in
the Bronx but now claiming
insanity, appeared shackled on
May 17 in the
U.S.
District Court
for the
Southern
District of
New York
courtroom of Judge
Andrew L.
Carter. Inner
City Press was
the only media
there
are files this
report.
Back on
November
2018 Judge
Carter ordered
the Bureau
of Prisons to
conduct a psychiatric
or
psychological
exam of Mr.
King. It was
done, by an
MCC doctor Ms.
Jenkins. But
now that
King's lawyer
wants a
hearing to
question
Doctor King,
it emerged
Friday that Ms.
Jenkins is on
maternity
leave.
The government
opposed any
hearing. But
Judge Carter
to his credit
ordered one,
first
suggesting a
June date. The
government
replied that
since Ms.
Jenkins is on
maternity
leave that
will not be
possible. (The
defense asked
why the BOP
would have
assigned Ms.
Jenkins to the
exam if they
knew; there
was not answer).
Finally a new
date in August
was arrived
at, with Mr. King
remaining in
custody. He
wants his name
to be clear,
however - at MCC
the BOP insists on
using other
names.
Judge
Carter said he
will sign an
order on how
to refer to Mr. King.
And the
wheels of
justice, such as
they are,
crank onward.
At least Judge
Carter or his
courtroom
Deputy make it
a rule to post
on the wall
outside
their
courtroom what
cases they
will hear that
day. Other
than
Magistrate
Judge Moses,
others have yet to
follow. See
@SDNYLIVE.
Back
on May 15, also before Judge
Carter, an Arizona based
crypto-currency maven with
multiple accounts with the
HSBC entered not guilty pleas
to four felony counts. Reginald
Fowler was
given until
May 29 to perfect the
$5 million
bond he is
free on, and
was told he
need not come
back to New
York for the
next status
conference on
July 24.
While the
indictment,
initially
under seal, refers to
Bank-1, the
forfeiture
allegations
specify two
HSBC Bank
USA Accounts
including
141000147, an
HSBC
Security USA
account and two HSBC
Securities USA
/ Pershing
LLC accounts.
Given
the Justice Department's
history with
HSBC, for
example on the
bank's money
laundering for
drug gangs,
some wonder
why HSBC was
not indicted.
This is a case
Inner City
Press will continue to
follow.
Chase Bank USA, N.A. told
Abraham Friedman his debt was
discharged but told Experian
that it was still owed - so
Friedman filed a lawsuit. That
was back in November in New
York State Supreme Court in
Rockland County, but Chase
soon moved to removed it to
the SDNY,
where the case
arrived at
day's end on
May 14 in the
courtroom of SDNY
Judge John G.
Koeltl.
Friedman's
lawyer Daniel
Zemel, his
office listed
in Clifton,
New Jersey,
appeared by
phone. Chase
and Experian
both had
lawyers in the
courtroom,
where Inner
City Press was
the only
media.
Judge
Koeltl said it
was sad that
this Fair
Credit
Reporting Act
case couldn't
just settle
before more
attorneys
fees. He asked
Zemel if he
would consent
to proceed
before a
Magistrate.
Zemel said he
preferred a
District
Judge.
Fine, Judge
Koeltl said,
setting a
trial date in
November, a
year after the
case was filed
in Rockland
County. Inner
City Press
will follow
the case as it
can.
Back on April 18
the systemic
scam of marshals seizing money
for factoring companies from
out of state banks emerged
with Inner City Press again
the only media present in the
SDNY courtroom
of Judge
Koeltl. A
receiver in
from Detroit
was contesting
a factoring
company using
NYC Marshal
Beagle to
seize money
from
Michigan's
Comerica Bank.
The factoring
company's
lawyer, with
the same last
name, said it
was fine since
Comerica like
BB&T - the
example he
gave - use the
New York
courts, so
should they
turn over
money. The
marshal's
lawyer's
argument were
less clear,
but they are
due on June
14. Inner City
Press will
cover this -
and BB&T.
Earlier on
April 18 before SDNY Judge
Koeltl a doctor
facing an NYPD parking ticket
and reportedly saying "I'm the
hero" back in 2016 resurfaced
before
Judge as a
police
brutality jury
trial. Rachel
Wellner was at
the
plaintiff's
table and NYPD
officer Vega
was on the
stand, getting
asked Didn't
you touch near
her breast?
Wellner was a
breast surgeon
at Montefiore
Hospital in
The Bronx but
got fired
after what the
tabloids
called her
"cop ram"
incident. On
April 18,
Wellner took
the stand and
by day's end
was grilled by
the City on
when she
called the New
York Post, and
about saying
she was led
out of the
precinct in a
chain gang.
She said based
on the photo
the chain gang
must have come
later. She
said the New
York Post
called her,
and she asked
them not to
publish her
name. They've
since reported
on and excerpted
from what they
called her
"semi-autobiographical
novel." The
judge has told
the jurors not
to seek out
any
information on
the case - or
presumably the
novel. They
will not sit
on Good Friday
but resume on
Monday. By the
end of April
18 her lawyers
had used seven
hours and 50
minutes; the
City had used
three hours
and 32
minutes. Inner
City Press
stayed another
two hours for
a crack sales
plea
agreement, a
pharmacist
pleading not
guilty to oxy
sales, a
sentenced man
staying out
for months
taking his
wife's
narcotics and
finally a
lawsuit on
controversial
seizures by
New York
marshals of
out of state
debtors'
assets. Watch
this site.
When
Wellner began
she made a
point of
immediately
telling the
jury that she
organized
medical
missions to
Nicaragua and
that along
with his
$450,000
salary at
Montefiore she
was able to be
back with the
Latino
community she
feel in love
with. The
government /
defense did
not object.
Across the
hall an
insider
trading
prosecution
got interesting
- but Inner
City Press
will return to
the Wellner
case.
Back on April
16, the second
day of the
trial, Vega's
partner
Nicolett
Davodian was
on the stand
and her
deposition and
previously
filed reports
were being
used against
her. When did
she start
saying that
Vega's knees
were swollen?
That Wellner
had allegedly
called all
female NYPD
officer a
derogatory
word for
lesbian? And
the now
somewhat
famous, "I'm
the hero, the
cops are not
heroes"? There
were many I
can't recalls.
Coming next is
the two
officers'
supervisor,
who allegedly
reprimanded
Davodian for
gloating to
Wellner upon
subsequent
full arrest,
Are you happy
now you crazy
f*cking b*tch?
Inner City
Press will be
there - watch
this site.
Both
the Daily New
and the New
York Post at
the time
mocked her for
saying she was
the hero and
the NYPD was
not. Her civil
complaint
recites her
voluntary work
in Nicaragua
and Israel.
SDNY Judge
John G. Koeltl
at the end of
questioning on
April 15 told
the jury to be
sure not to
check social
media (how
realistic that
is today is a
question),
then held
several off
the record
sidebars with
the case's
attorneys,
followed by
pleasantries
with visitors
from
Australia.
We'll have
more on this
trial.
Earlier on April 15 former
NYPD officer Gerard Scparta
pled guilty on April 12 to
theft of public funds in the
form of SSI disability
benefits and to tax
evasion. SDNY
Judge
Alison Nathan
set his
sentencing
date for July
16; the US
Attorney's
office has
agreed to a
sentence guideline
between
30 and 37
months in
prison. As
part of the
plea ritual
Judge Nathan
asked if the
events had taken
place in the
SDNY. First
there was
mention of
Staten Island
- which is the
Eastern
District - then
that the
Social
Security
office Scparta
dealt with was
in Orange
County, in the
SDNY. The strip club
where he work
while claiming
to be disabled
was in
Manhattan. But
there's more:
as
recounted in
the complaint
that was superseded
on April
15, " a
cooperating
witness
("CW-1") 2 , I
have learned
the following,
in substance
and in part:
a. Between in
or about 1987
and in or
about 1990,
GERARD
SCPARTA, the
defendant, and
CW-1 both
worked
together as
NYPD officers
on a taskforce
in the 1st
Precinct in
Manhattan. b.
Between
approximately
in or about
1992 and in or
about 2012,
CW-1 referred
NYPD police
officers to
CC-1 so that
CC-1 could
assist the
officers to
defraud the
SSA by
submitting
applications
for SSD that
contained
false
statements
regarding
purported
disabilities.
Because
officers who
had sustained
legitimate
injuries while
working could
still perform
certain types
of work, many
of the
officers
referred to
CC-1 by CW-1
falsely stated
to the SSA
that they were
depressed
and/or had
mental health
issues in
order to
certify that
they were
incapable of
performing any
gainful
activity. In
exchange for
referring
these officers
to CC-1, CW-1
received four
months of the
disability
benefits
received by
any officer
who was
approved to
receive
benefits. c.
In or about
1997,
approximately
one year prior
to SCPARTA's
submission of
an application
for SSD
benefits to
the SSA, CW-1
referred
SCPARTA to
CC-1.
Specifically,
CW-1 escorted
SCPARTA to
CC-l's
residence for
meetings on
approximately
three or four
occasions over
the course of
a year."
There is a
footnote: "
Like CC-1,
CW-1 has
pleaded guilty
to grand
larceny in New
York State
Court for his
involvement in
this scheme to
defraud the
SSA. CW-1 is
cooperating
with law
enforcement
with the hope
of receiving a
more lenient
sentence." Inner City
Press aims to
have more on
this, and on
the two counts
in the superseding
information
that Scparta
pled not
guilty to on
Monday.
Back on April 12
when Will Baez came up for
sentencing on he faced a
mandatory minimum ten years in
prison for five kilos of
heroin and a .45 handgun and
ammo in his Bronx apartment.
The courtroom of SDNY
Judge Ronnie
Abrams was packed
with dozens of
family and friends,
and Baez spoke
about his
seven year old
daughter and
dream of opening
an auto body
shop. His lawyer spoke
of conditions
in the MCC: 26
men on 13 bunk
beds in a unit
with one
toilet and one
shower and
rodents in the
walls. There
was no
discussion of
the safety
value
provisions of
the First Step
Act, which
later in the day got
a reduction
for another
defendant
caught with
five kilos of
what he
thought was heroin.
Judge
Abrams showed
those in
the courtroom
the sentencing
guidelines
book and said
Baez
need not be
defined by
the worst day
in his life. But ten
years
are ten years.
He waved as
they led him
to the
elevator of 40
Foley Square
in shackles.
Another
defendant on
April 9
before SDNY
Judge Gregory
Woods had
no fewer than
three defense
lawyers with
him, more than
some
defendants who
face and
receive much
longer
sentences. But
Judge Woods'
reasoning for
imposing a
sentence of 48
month in
prison rather
than the lower
guideline of
57 months was
that Martinez
was that his
was the lower
level of the
gang, that
this will be
his longest
sentence on 15
convictions,
and that Judge
Woods hopes
Martinez can
get back to
his 13 year
old son faster
than 57
months. It was
as is often
the case with
Judge Woods a
comprehensive
and human
sentencing,
ending with an
"I wish you
well" and
"Thanks." The
lawyers, it
seems, were
from DLA
Piper; it
contrasts to
other cases
Inner City
Press has
witnessed this
year, where a
defendant
complained
that his
passport was
not returned,
for example.
We'll have
more on this.
The U.S.
Treasury employee accused in
October of leaking Suspicious
Activity Reports about Paul
Manafort and others, Natalie
Edwards, pled not guilty back
on January 30 before
Judge Woods. Her next
appearance was set for April
4 at 2 pm, but when Inner
City Press came in again
through the metal detectors
to cover it, other cases
were on in Judge Woods' 12th
floor courtroom. His deputy
informed Inner City
Press that Edwards was
adjourned to May 2 at 10 am.
One
of the other cases in front
of Judge Woods, a defense
lawyer argued that his
client Freddy would never
have voluntarily told the
detectives that he is a
"great dice roller;" he is
making a suppression motion.
But it will be delayed, by
vacation and the prosecutor
being on trial. Judge Woods
urges both sides to file
more quickly, and pointed
asked if a police witness
had, in fact, perjured
himself. That trial is set
for July 22 - the case did
not seem to be listed on the
board in the lobby of 500
Pearl Street, and still
without electronics it was
not easy to inquire, yet.
Back on
January 20 on Worth Street,
Inner City Press asked her
lawer Jacob Kaplan of Brafman
& Associates about a
statement made during the
proceeding, that another
person's device was also
search. Kaplan acknowledged
that had been said, adding
that he didn't know who it
was. Video here,
Vine here.
Jump cut to 2 April
2019: "I was a
street drug dealer in
from of my building in
the Bronx," a defendant
told U.S.
District Court
for the
Southern District of
New York Judge
Paul A.
Engelmayer on
April 2.
Defendant Gonzalez
was pleading
guilty to a
lesser
included
charge, with a
guideline
sentence
of between 120
and 150 months
in jail. But
he won't be
sentenced
until July 11 at 2:30
pm, after the
Probation
Department
does its
interview and
issues a Pre
Sentencing
Report that
will remain
sealed until,
somehow,
Gonzalez
appeals. We'll
have more on
this - there
were no family
members in the
courtroom,
no media other
than Inner
City Press.
Less
than hour earlier when
Eldar Rakhamimov appeared
for sentencing for inflating
the number of Pepsi and Canada Dry
bottles
returned through his business in the
SDNY
courtroom of
Judge
Ronnie Abrams,
he had many of
his
employees and
family members
with him.
His lawyer
Tony Mirvis
pointed them
out, arguing
that if not
sentenced to
jail he could
pay
back the
$700,000 restitution
faster. But half of
the debt is to
the State of
New York;
recently Judge
Abrams
rejected just
such has
argument from
a medical
software
company executive
on tax fraud.
Here, Judge
Abrams went
below the 37
to 46 month guideline
sentence, to
15 months with
two
years of
supervised
released - the
books of his
recycling company
will be open -
and a
$15,000 fine. Two of
his employees
were asked to
take off their
caps by the
Court Security
Officers. The
prosecutor
said, It would
not be a bad
thing if his
company just
fell apart.
The case is US
v. Eldar
Rakhamimov,
18 – CR – 72
(RA).
***
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