THE WORLD READS WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER — 8,324,077 VISITS IN ONE YEAR | 2,905,611 VISITORS VISIT 8,324,077 TIMES 3 TIMES EVERY DAY IN ONE YEAR. HIGHEST ACTIVITY IN WPCNR HISTORY.White PlainsCitizeNetReporter lifted its worldwide visits from unique visitors to wpcnr.com to 8,324,077,a 1,306,419 increase in visits in one year from 7,017,658 visits to the site last year which covers White Plains and Westchester County. The 8,324,077 visits were made by 2,005,611 unique visitors who visited wpcnr an average of 3 visits a day. ON JULY 20- -2026 visitors have accessed wpcnr and made 3,072 visits an average of 1.6 visits. In the last week 33,495 individual vistors made 54,458 visits, averaging 1.6 visits. In the last month, 152,940 visitors recorded 229,338 visits (1.5 visits)

MS-13 Member Given 35 Years for Murder.

Posted on June 28, 2011 by John Bailey

WPCNR FBI WIRE. From the Federal Bureau of Investigation. June 28, 2011:

Edwin Henriquez, also known as “Joker,” a member of the La Mara Salvatrucha (“MS-13”) street gang on Long Island, was sentenced to 35 years’ imprisonment for the September 19, 2004, murder of 16-year-old fellow MS-13 member Olivia Melendez Mendoza (“Melendez”) in Old Westbury, New York.

According to his plea allocution and documents previously filed in the case, Henriquez and other Long Island MS-13 members decided to kill Melendez because they believed that she was not abiding by the gang’s rules. Pursuant to their plan, Henriquez lured Melendez to a wooded area in Old Westbury where he shot her once in the back of the head.

On April 12, 2011, Judge Wexler sentenced MS-13 member Jose Recinos, also known as “Psycho” and “Little Psycho,” to 20 years’ imprisonment for aiding and abetting Henriquez in the murder.

FBI PICKS UP ALLEGED EMBEZZLER OF $19 MILLION FROM CITIGROUP

Posted on June 28, 2011 by John Bailey

WPCNR FBI WIRE. From the Federal Bureau of Investigation. June 28, 2011:

Gary Foster, a former vice president in Citigroup, Inc.’s treasury finance department has been arrested on bank fraud charges arising from his embezzlement of more than $19 million. Foster was apprehended at John F. Kennedy International Airport Sunday morning when he arrived on a flight from Bangkok.¹

According to the complaint, Foster transferred money from various Citigroup accounts to Citigroup’s cash account and then to his personal account at a different bank. Between July 2010 and December 2010, he allegedly caused approximately $900,000 to be moved from Citigroup’s interest expense account and approximately $14.4 million from Citigroup’s debt adjustment account to the bank’s cash account, and then caused the money to be wired out of Citigroup’s cash account to his personal account at another bank in eight separate wire transfers.

The complaint further charges that Foster caused a fraudulent contract or deal number to be placed in the reference line of the wire transfer instructions to create the appearance that the transfers were in support of an existing contract.

“The defendant allegedly used his knowledge of bank operations to commit the ultimate inside job. We are committed to ensuring the integrity of the banking system and to prosecuting those who would undermine it for their personal gain,” stated United States Attorney Lynch. Ms. Lynch expressed her appreciation to Citigroup, which brought this matter to the attention of the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

“The egregious behavior of those who would exploit our banking system for personal and criminal gain will not be tolerated. We remain committed to investigating and apprehending those who cheat the system,” said FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge Fedarcyk.

If convicted, the defendant faces a maximum sentence of 30 years’ imprisonment on the bank fraud charges.

The government’s case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Michael L. Yaeger and Karen Hennigan.

Mayor’s Office Confirms Pasquale Hire. Salary: $104,000

Posted on June 27, 2011 by John Bailey

WPCNR CITY CIRCUIT. From the Mayor’s Office. (EDITED) June 27, 2011:

Mayor Thomas M. Roach announced today that Karen Pasquale has joined his staff as Senior Advisor to the Mayor. In this capacity, Ms. Pasquale will have a variety of responsibilities including government relations, economic development, city operations and policy planning.

John Callahan Chief of Staff for the Mayor’s Office advised WPCNR Ms. Pasquale was hired at a salary of $104,000.

Ms. Pasquale previously worked at the New York Power Authority (NYPA) where she was the Vice President for Enterprise Shared Services. In that capacity, she managed the Departments of Information Technology, Procurement and Real Estate.

Prior to that, Ms. Pasquale served as Senior Assistant to County Executive Andrew Spano,where she was responsible for government relations at the federal, state and local levels.

Ms. Pasquale has also worked in the state government and in the non-profit sector. She resides in White Plains with her husband, Robert Hoch, a prominent member of the White Plains Democratic City Committee,and President of the White Plains Historical Society, and two children.

Mayor Roach previously announced the appointment of Kim DiTomasso Director of Special Projects. Ms. DiTomasso will be responsible for implementing Mayoral initiatives, and will serve as a liaison to community and business groups throughout the city.

Mayor Roach said, “My goal is to put together a small and nimble staff capable of working effectively on the broad range of issues facing the city. Karen and Kim are well-qualified professionals who bring years of experience to the table and share my action-oriented approach to government.”

Together, Ms. Pasquale and Ms. DiTomassolook forward to working with all the City Commissioners, staff and residents.

Both Ms. Pasquale and Ms. DiTomasso are filling current vacant positions in the Mayor’s office.

RIVERSPACE SEEKS NEW HOME FOR ITS SUMMER CAMP. FLOOD CLOSES HAYES

Posted on June 25, 2011 by John Bailey

WPCNR STAGE DOOR. From Riverspace, Nyack, New York. June 25, 2011:

The folks at Riverspace are very sad to announce an enormous amount of damage in the theater due to this week’s floods in Nyack. Tragically, the building housing the theater was inundated with water and the theater itself was flooded from the stage all the way to lobby. Needless to say, we are heartbroken at this turn of events and are working hard to assess the situation.

Because of the extent of the damage, we know we won’t be able to host the Helen Hayes Youth Theater camp as we usually do each summer – which was scheduled to begin July 5th. There are over 300 kids ages 4 to 18 who now desperately need to find a stage for their summer performances. If anyone can help them relocate, your help would be most sincerely appreciated! Please contact Danielle Rudess at [email protected]

Our hearts go out to everyone who was impacted by the storm and floods this week. Please keep us in your thoughts as well. We will keep you updated of future developments.