Officer Philip Spaman Arrested for Forcible Touching Child

An Ilion police officer Monday became the fifth law enforcement officer this year to face criminal charges in the Mohawk Valley.

Ilion Officer Philip Spaman, 47, of Herkimer, was arraigned in Herkimer County Court on Monday on misdemeanor charges involving the touching of a child.

He faces one count each of forcible touching and endangering the welfare of a child, prosecutors said.

Assistant District Attorney Jeff Carpenter said the two misdemeanor charges against Spaman were handed up in a sealed indictment from a grand jury.

The charges stem from alleged events involving a child under the age of 17 that occurred between September 2007 and October 2008, Carpenter said.

Because of the nature of the case, no information on the victim or his or her relationship to Spaman is being released, prosecutors said.

Ilion police Chief Timothy Parisi said Monday evening that Spaman had been suspended from duty with pay while internal and criminal proceedings against him move forward. Spaman has been a member of the department for almost 8 years.

“The criminal justice system must now take its course,” Parisi said in released statement that directed additional questions to the District Attorney’s Office. “I ask that you respect the judicial process and seek no further comment from the Ilion Police Department.”

Spaman was processed by the Herkimer village police department Monday morning prior to his arraignment, Herkimer police said.

He was represented at the arraignment by attorney George Aney and pleaded not guilty to both charges, Carpenter said. Aney did not return calls Monday.

A pre-trial hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 5.

Earlier this year, two members of the state police and two other local police officers were charged with crimes. None of those cases has been resolved:

*State police Investigator Matthew Sullivan, who is suspended without pay, was indicted in April on 10 misdemeanor charges and traffic violations stemming from a Feb. 6 traffic stop in Trenton. The charges include driving while intoxicated, speeding, unlawfully fleeing a police officer, reckless endangerment, reckless driving, passing a red light, failure to keep right and failure to comply with a police officer.

*Trooper David Volz, who is assigned to the Herkimer state police barracks, was charged April 23 with misdemeanor petit larceny in connection with the alleged mulch theft in Rome. He was suspended without pay.

*Then-Dolgeville Officer Greg Malta Jr. was charged with misdemeanor fourth-degree criminal mischief, after police said he drove his patrol car around the school's baseball field. Malta was fired from the force.

*Herkimer Village Police Investigator Robert Risi, an 18-year veteran, stole $9,600 from an evidence locker, prosecutors. Risi faces a felony charge of third-degree larceny. He has been suspended without pay.

Trial Begins for Former Deputy Milton Pruitt Accused of Having Child Porn

The Federal Court trial of a former Forsyth County sheriff’s deputy accused of receiving and possessing child pornography began Monday in U.S. District Court in Gainesville.

Prosecutor Brent Gray in his opening argument told the jury the reason they are in court is because former Deputy Sergeant Milton Scott Pruitt said he was 'just curious'; the problem is, he was just curious two years ago about child pornography.

Gray said Pruitt is accused of opening and viewing images of unclothed children from criminal investigative files he should not have opened using a sheriff’s laptop computer in his patrol car.

Investigators later found hundreds of child porn images on his home computer.
Gray invited the jury of eight women and six men to study the evidence, use their common sense and find Pruitt guilty.

Defense attorney Ann Fitz urged the jury to find Pruitt innocent, saying this is not the case of a pedophile with a fetish.

Fitz said there is no evidence that Pruitt purchased, solicited or produced child porn and that only 20 of the 328 images were clearly identified as child pornography. Fitz added that there is no evidence Pruitt made repeat visits to the porno sites and that he did not 'knowingly' receive the images.

The prosecution's first witness as the trial opened was Forsyth County's Information Technology Director John David Rusk.

Rusk testified he found child pornography images linked to Pruitt while investigating unusual activity on the county's computer system.

Officer Derrick Saunders Points Weapon on McDonalds Employee

A Denver police officer faces felony menacing and weapons charges based on an allegation he pointed a pistol to speed up his order at an Aurora McDonald's in May.

An employee at the McDonald's at 18181 E. Hampden Ave. told investigators two Denver police officers were waiting for their order at the drive-through window in the early-morning hours when Derrick Curtis Saunders, 29, grew impatient and pulled a weapon.

In addition to the menacing and weapons charges, Saunders is also charged with prohibited use of a weapon, reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct, the Aurora Police Department said Monday.

Denver police spokesman Sonny Jackson said Saunders has been suspended with pay during the investigation, but would be put on unpaid leave once the department is formally notified of the charges.

Jackson said neither he nor Police Chief Gerald Whitman would comment on the case.

"It would be inappropriate for us to make any comment about another department's case, especially an ongoing, active investigation," Jackson said.

Saunders was most recently assigned to Denver International Airport. His booking photograph was not available from Aurora police Monday.

Family Sues After Police Taser 12-year-old

A federal right lawsuit has been filed against a southern Illinois sheriff's deputy who used a stun gun on three children at an emergency shelter.

The children's guardian is suing the Jefferson County deputies, the county and Sheriff Roger Mulch, reports Associated Press.

According to the lawsuit, the deputies responded to a call from a shelter near Mount Vernon last summer to handle a situation that was labeled out of control, in which, two 12-year olds and an 11-year-old were involved and later stunned with a taser gun. After the children were shocked, they were allegedly forced into a closet along with another child. Other children who tried to intervene prompted the call.

No criminal charges have been filed, and Mulch confirmed the investigations are underway and believes the deputies acted appropriately.

FBI Investigate Several DC Officers for Gambling Connected to Homicides

Federal investigators are looking into allegations that several D.C.-area law enforcement officers were involved in a Maryland gambling ring that may also be connected to homicides, the Washington Post reported Sunday.

The probe has targeted five Prince George’s County police officers, a District police official and a former D.C. Housing Authority officer, the report said. The officers allegedly helped protect illegal gambling sites that rotated around Southern Maryland. Sometimes the officers reportedly wore uniforms while providing security for high-stakes craps games with pots as high as $100,000.

Prince George’s County Police Chief Roberto Hylton said he turned over the entire probe to the FBI after he took over the department earlier this year. Three of the suspected officers have retired or are on leave. The probe has been under way since 2007.

Sgt. Brenda Stevenson Arrested for Using Excessive Force & Lying to FBI

A 45-year-old Highland Park Police Sergeant Brenda Stevenson finds herself on the wrong side of the law, indicted on federal charges for using excessive force and lying to FBI investigators.

The court documents against her indicate she struck and assaulted a victim identified as only V. B. and violated her constitutional rights.

According to the indictment, the woman suffered injuries in a November 2007 incident when Sgt. Stevenson punched her in the face.

The city of Highland Park's Web site still lists Sgt. Stevenson as one of the officers in charge on afternoons. We asked at the police department and mayor's office whether she's still on the job and our questions are not being answered.

"This officer just needs to go. She's in the wrong profession and she needs to be charged and she needs to be sentenced," said Ron Scott of the Detroit Coalition Against Police Brutality. He applauds the victim for going forward with the case.

In addition to the assault charges, Stevenson is accused of making false statements to the FBI, telling investigators the victim struggled, kicked and fought with officers. The FBI says that never happened.

Stevenson faces up to 15 years in prison and a half a million dollar fine if convicted.

Officer Robert Sizemore Threatens Suicide After Reported Sexual Assault

A Chattahoochee Florida Police Officer was arrested after a reported sexual assault and later threatening suicide on Saturday.

Robert Sizemore, 50, was arrested late Saturday afternoon after Decatur County Sheriff's deployed their Strategic Response Team to the Jameson Inn on Tallahassee Highway.

Sheriff's Major Wendell Cofer stated that Robert Sizemore was in a hotel room and had threatened suicide. Being a Chattahoochee Policeman, his weapon's training created a tenuous situation for Sheriff's Deputies and the Sheriff's SRT were called in.

Major Cofer stated they were able to make contact with Sizemore by telephone and talk him out peaceably.

The situation began in the early hours Saturday morning when a sexual assault was reported. A family member reported to her mother that she had been assaulted by Robert Sizemore. Sizemore was reported to have checked into the Jameson Inn at approximately 3 am Saturday morning.

The Chattahoochee Police Chief also responded to the scene after a request by Sheriff's Deputies in case he was needed to talk with his officer.

The specific charges against Sizemore were being developed as of early Saturday evening.
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More Information: http://www.panhandleparade.com/index.php/mbb/article/chattahoochee_police_officer_arrested_in_georgia/mbb7717807/

Lawsuit Filed Against Duputies Who Tasered Boy Multiple Times

A state agency is actually suing the deputies, who work in Jefferson County. The Post-Dispatch quotes the lawsuit:

The suit says that without any physical provocation, Bowers used a Taser on one boy multiple times, including at least once on his neck. Bowers pushed another boy down on his bunk and threatened to sodomize him before shocking him multiple times and causing him to urinate and defecate, the suit says.

Lawler then handcuffed another boy before Bowers shocked him multiple times with the Taser. A 17-year-old girl who was pleading with the deputies to stop was then handcuffed by Lawler, choked and threatened by Bowers and then tossed into a closet, the suit says.
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http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/laworder/story/D8F2946CFAEB63A6862575F70007D1E5?OpenDocument

New Details On Officer Donnie Breeden Accused of Hit and Run

New details are emerging in the case of a Crafton police officer accused of hitting and killing a pedestrian near Station Square and then fleeing the scene.

Donnie Breeden, 38, is charged with the July 2007 death of David Hall on West Carson Street, in Pittsburgh.

Hall, 24, was struck in the 1500 block of West Carson Street after stopping to talk to a bus driver, according to Pittsburgh police.

"Clearly, when there's allegations that a police officer is involved, he's violated the crimes code, that's cause for sadness in the law enforcement community. It's a tragic situation," said assistant district attorney Mark Tranquilli.

"He's very upset, obviously, extremely upset. His world is turned upside down. But I'll think he'll get through it," said Breeden's attorney, William Difenderfer."

According to the criminal complaint, a witness told police that on the night of the hit-and-run, Breeden was with a group of friends at a restaurant when they decided to go to the South Side.

The witness told police that Breeden drove separately from the rest of the group.

Investigators said the witness told them that one of the people in the group got a call from Breeden saying he had hit a person with his vehicle on West Carson Street.

The witness went on to say that when the rest of the group arrived at the accident scene, they saw a Port Authority bus and several other vehicles, including Breeden's, stopped in the road near the victim.

In the criminal complaint, the witness told police that Breeden told his friends that he couldn't stay at the accident scene because "I'm a cop. I can't go to jail. If I go to jail, I will kill myself. I'm getting out of here. No one knows I did this, so I am getting out of here." The witness said Breeden left the scene.

A few days after the incident, the witness told police he went to Breeden's house to fix the damage to the SUV involved in the crash. The witness also said Breeden is still driving the same vehicle.

Breeden had been with the Crafton police force since 1994. He was released from the Allegheny County Jail on bail and faces two charges of involuntary manslaughter and accidents involving death.

At a hearing on Friday, Breeden's case was waived to trial. His next court date is Aug. 17.

Slideshow - Photos From The Case

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Previous Post: http://whathappenedtoprotectandserve.blogspot.com/2009/07/officer-donnie-breeden-arrested-for-hit.html
Other Information:
July 9, 2009: Paid Suspension For Cop Charged In Hit-And-Run Death
July 5, 2009: Crafton Police Officer Charged In Fatal Hit-And-Run

Former Officer David Dietz Will Plead Insantity to Kidnapping

A former South Carolina police officer who authorities say kidnapped and held his estranged wife and infant son hostage in Georgia says he intends to enter an insanity plea.

An attorney for David Dietz said in court documents filed this week he intends to introduce evidence that his client was suffering from a mental disease or defect at the time of his alleged crimes.

Dietz has pleaded not guilty to several federal charges in South Carolina, including kidnapping and carjacking. The results of his mental evaluation have been sealed.

Dietz and a teenager accused of helping him surrendered on Jan. 5 after a 13-hour standoff at a motel in Madison, Ga. The two had been holed up with Dietz’s estranged wife and their infant son.
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http://www.foxcarolina.com/news/20086365/detail.html

Former Officer Robert Flanagan Wants His Sentence Reduced

The attorney for a former Baltimore police officer who was sentenced to 10 years in prison for taking nearly $380,000 from a Howard County bank in December 2007 asked a three-judge panel in Circuit Court on Thursday to have his jail term cut in half.

Debra Saltz said that her client, Robert Flanagan of Dallastown, Pa., was "extremely desperate" and still suffering from the effects of the illness that forced him to leave a nine-year law enforcement career when he took the money from a Bank of America branch.

Calling the sentence imposed by Judge Richard S. Bernhardt excessive to the point of cruel and unusual punishment, Saltz said at one point during the hearing, "In my mind, he would have been better getting drunk, driving down the road and killing someone. He would only get 18 months."

Judge Lenore R. Gelfman immediately disagreed, saying that someone guilty of vehicular homicide while under the influence of alcohol could receive up to 15 years.

Flanagan, then 38, had worked for a year as a guard for Dunbar Armored Security after leaving the Baltimore police force because of post traumatic stress disorder. Assistant State's attorney Lynn Marshall said that Flanagan was dismissed from Dunbar because of discrepancies in the money he collected and what he turned in.

Dressed in his old uniform but lacking proper credentials, Flanagan persuaded an employee at the Bank of America branch on Baltimore National Pike to turn over $379,000 in cash. Flanagan and his wife, Robin, were arrested later that day. About $200,000 has never been recovered.

The employee who gave Flanagan the money as well as the branch manager were later fired, which Judge Bernhardt later cited as one of the reasons for the 10-year sentence. Since it was a first offense, Flanagan could have received as little as six months of probation.

Charges against Robin Flanagan were later dropped when she cooperated with police.

"We don't know what happened to that money, and we'll never know," Saltz said.

But Marshall contends that Flanagan still knows where the money can be found.

"He stashed that money somewhere," Marshall said. "He will do jail time so he can have a nice nest egg when he gets out."

Flanagan, who is being jailed in Cumberland and is receiving treatment for PTSD, according to his lawyer, declined to speak on his own behalf.

At the time of his arrest, Flanagan was out on bond after being arrested in Baltimore County on a similar charge. Flanagan pleaded guilty to taking $70,000 from a Target store in Towson while dressed as an armored guard, and was given five years in jail to run concurrent with his sentence in Howard County.

Saltz said that he should have been given the same length term in Howard County, but Marshall argued that the Baltimore County judge who sentenced Flanagan was aware of his 10-year sentence in Howard County.

Gelfman, along with Judge Louis A. Becker and Judge Diane O. Leasure, will make their decision later.

Former Officer Marvin Thompson Arrested for Child Porn

A former Hillsborough Sheriff's corporal was arrested by U.S. Marshals Thursday on two counts of attempting to access child pornography with a computer and one count of possession of child pornography.

Sheriff's spokesman J.D. Callaway confirmed Friday that Marvin Thompson, 58, worked at the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office from 1982 to 2003.

Thompson was indicted in U.S. District Court on Wednesday, and booked into the Pinellas County Jail on Thursday.

The indictment says that in October 2008 Thompson knowingly tried to see a minor involved in "sexually explicit conduct" on his computer in Thonotosassa, and in November he had some shipped to him. Officials confiscated his Dell computer and external hard drive.

Taser Death of Jarrel Gray Will Go to Court

A federal judge ruled today that the wrongful death case against Frederick County, its sheriff's office and one of its deputies for the use of a Taser is going to trial.

On Nov. 18, 2007, Jarrel Gray died, hours after being tasered twice by Cpl. Rudy Torres.

The family of the 20-year-old Frederick man is seeking $145 million in damages.

"The family is elated that they will have their day in court," said Ted Williams, one of the lawyers representing Gray's parents.

A pretrial conference is set for September, at which time U.S. District Court Judge William Quarles will set court dates.

Williams anticipates the trial to get under way in early 2010.

Officer Christopher Sullivan Arrested for Domestic Violence

An off-duty Hartford police officer was arrested early Friday by Vernon police on domestic violence charges.

Christopher Sullivan, 34, of Old Town Road, was arraigned Friday in Superior Court in Rockville on charges of first-degree burglary, third-degree assault, second-degree threatening, breach of peace and unlawful restraint.

Vernon police said they were called at 2:33 a.m. to an apartment on South Street on a report of a domestic violence assault. The woman they met told them that she and Sullivan had been in an argument that escalated into an assault. She told officers that Sullivan held her down and threatened her.

The woman told police that she asked Sullivan to leave several times. He finally did, and she locked the door behind him, she told police. Sullivan then broke the door open and assaulted her again, police said.

Police found Sullivan at his apartment and took him into custody. His bail was set at $250,000.

Hartford Assistant Police Chief Neil Dryfe said Friday afternoon that Sullivan, according to department policy, has been suspended from his duties without pay. Sullivan has been a Hartford police officer for seven years.

Former Officer Feliciano Sanchez Pleads Guilty to Sexual Assault

A former California police officer accused of sexually assaulting a motorist during a traffic stop pleaded guilty in federal court, federal prosecutors said Friday.

Federal prosecutors charged Feliciano Sanchez with deprivation of rights under color of law.

Feliciano Sanchez, 34, admitted in court Thursday that while on duty on May 16, 2007, he pulled over a female driver in a traffic stop and forced her to perform oral sex on him, according to a news release from U.S. Attorney Thomas O'Brien, who heads the office for the Central District.

Sanchez, then of Los Angeles County's Bell Police Department, stopped the woman for speeding or weaving down the road, said central California U.S. attorney spokesman Thom Mrozek, citing court documents.

After learning the woman, identified as R.H. in court documents, did not have a driver's license with her, Sanchez told her he suspected her of drinking and her car would be towed, Mrozek said.

Sanchez offered to drive R.H. to her job, but instead drove her to the parking lot of an auto repair outlet in Bell, Mrozek said.

Sanchez placed his hand on his gun and forced her to perform sex on him in his patrol car, Mrozek said. Afterward, Sanchez drove R.H. to her work place, Mrozek said.

"Officer Sanchez brutalized a person he had sworn to serve," O'Brien said in the release. "As a result of his criminal conduct, Mr. Sanchez now faces a substantial amount of time in federal prison. His conduct eroded public confidence in law enforcement and cast a pall over his former colleagues who obey the law, proudly working to preserve public safety."

Federal prosecutors charged Sanchez with a civil rights violation, according to the release.

The crime carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison upon sentencing. Sanchez has been held without bond since his arrest in May 2007, Mrozek said. Sanchez's sentencing is scheduled for November 18.

Sanchez resigned as an officer after his indictment, Bell Police Department Capt. Anthony Miranda said. Miranda said Sanchez's case was a first for the department.

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Previous Post: http://whathappenedtoprotectandserve.blogspot.com/2008/06/former-bell-police-officer-arrested-on.html

Officer Bernard Hall Jr Arrested for Corruption

A second Benton Harbor police officer was arrested on Friday on similar corruption charges that sent a narcotics officer to prison earlier this year.

The U.S. Attorney’s office for the Western District of Michigan said narcotics supervisor Bernard Hall Jr., 33, of Benton Harbor, faces a three count indictment.

Hall supervised officer Andrew Thomas Collins, who was convicted of planting drug evidence and falsifying search warrants on Jan. 26.

He is serving a 37-month prison sentence.

Hall supervised Collins and other officers in the Benton Harbor Police Department’s narcotics unit, the FBI said.

Hall is accused of working with Collins in falsifying search warrants and planting drug evidence on suspected drug dealers and executing search warrants without proper probable cause.

He also is accused of unlawfully seizing personal property during drug raids and keeping money and property for his own use, Brian Delaney, criminal chief with the U.S. Attorney’s Office, said.

Count two of Hall’s indictment alleges that he made false statements during the federal grand jury investigating Collins.

"In particular the indictment alleges that Hall lied when he testified under oath that ‘I’ve never seen him (Collins) take money from anybody" and "I’ve never witnessed him (Collins) do anything illegal," Delaney said.

The third count alleges that Hall made false statements to the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office when he claimed he had overseen a drug deal by a confidential informant on Feb. 20, 2007 at 849 LaVette St., Delaney said.

"In truth and in fact" there was no drug purchase made at that time at that location, Delaney said.

Hall resigned from the police department and is scheduled for a hearing Friday in federal court in Grand Rapids.

Benton Harbor Police Chief Al Mingo and officials from the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced the charges during a press conference Friday morning.

More than 100 drug cases and convictions that the two officers handled are being reviewed by the Berrien County Prosecutor’s Office and by federal prosecutors for possible dismissal.

Officer Joshua Gutierrez Arrested for Fighting Outside Bar

A school district police officer was arrested after a bachelor party got out of control at a South Side bar.

The officer, 29-year-old Joshua Gutierrez, was arrested at The Steer bar off of Southeast Military Drive. San Antonio Police arrested Gutierrez, who is Northside Independent School District police officer, after he allegedly got into a scuffle with a San Antonio police officer outside the bar as the bachelor party was ending.

According to police, Gutierrez and two of his brothers were asked to leave when the bar closed. The three men then allegedly started yelling at the bouncer as they moved into the parking lot.

San Antonio Police say when their officers arrived, they tried to arrest one of Gutierrez's brothers. According to the officers, Gutierrez then pulled one of the SAPD officers by the shoulder.

"At this point, he's been relieved of duty with pay, pending the outcome of the investigation," explained Captain Brad Mills of the Northside Independent School District Police Department.

Gutierrez has been with NISD as a police officer for nearly five years. Before that, he was a jailer for Bexar County.

"He's been a good officer during that period," Captain Mills told News 4 WOAI. "We haven't had any discipline problems during that period."

Gutierrez was jailed for interfering with the duties of a police officer. He was released on a $800 bond.

Officer Mike Trio Arrested for Sexual Battery

A Clifton Forge Police Officer is off the job, charged in a sexual abuse case.

Mike Gary Trio was indicted by the Alleghany County grand jury Wednesday.

Trio is charged with sexual battery and another sexually related offense.

Court documents show the woman Trio is accused of abusing is 18 years old. Trio is 51 years old.

Police Chief Barry Balser tells WSLS Trio has been on the force for about a year and a half. Balser says when the initial complaint was made in February, the case was immediately turned over to State Police and the Commonwealth’s Attorney.

Trio has been moved to a position in the town’s public works department, while the case is resolved.

Trio was released from jail on $10,000 bond.

Officer Cleveland Reynolds Arrested for Rape and Sodomy

A West Precinct officer has been charged with rape and sodomy, Birmingham police announced this evening.

A 23-year-old woman told police that Officer Cleveland Reynolds, who has been with the department for a year, sexually assaulted her while he was on duty.

Reynolds, who works the 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift, is being held at the Jefferson County Jail on bonds totaling $120,000.

Police said the assault happened on July 9 in the western part of the city. Police spokesman Sgt. Johnny Williams declined to provide additional information about the incident.

Williams said he did not know if Reynolds has an attorney.

Reynolds is on paid administrative leave.
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http://www.nbc13.com/vtm/news/local/article/birmingham_police_officer_arrested_for_rape_and_sodomy/83586/

Howard Goldstein Arrested on Child Sex Charges

A 10-year-veteran advanced medical technician at the Nassau County Police Department tried to seduce an investigator posing as a 13-year-old girl through chats over the Internet, Nassau police said, adding that he sent explicit pictures and sexually graphic language during the exchanges.

Howard Goldstein, 38, is charged with eight counts of first-degree attempted disseminating indecent material to a minor and 11 counts of attempted endangering the welfare of a child.

He was being held on $82,500 cash bail or bond after he was arraigned in First District Court in Hempstead Thursday.

He pleaded not guilty. He was represented by the Legal Aid Society and is due back in court Monday.

Investigators said Goldstein thought he was communicating with a 13-year-old girl, but was actually corresponding with an officer.

The exchanges began in July last year with a New York State Police investigator in Albany. Nassau police arrested Goldstein Wednesday night.

"They were posing as a 13-year-old female and they got hits on this person," said Nassau police spokesman Det. Lt. Kevin Smith. "This particular unit scans the Internet for child predators. . . . That individual made sexually explicit comments via the Internet."

Goldstein, police said, eventually tried to arrange for the girl to take a Greyhound bus to Penn Station and then a Long Island Rail Road train to Rockville Centre.

He never followed through on the plan to meet the girl Tuesday, police said, but officers arrested him the next day.

"Subsequently that individual was locked up" after his ambulance bureau shift was finished and while he was on his way home from work, Smith said.
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http://www.newsday.com/news/local/nassau/ny-licop1712978469jul16,0,6766362.story