WHITE PLAINS CITIZENETREPORTER SETS RECORD VISITS FOR YEAR 7,017,658 VISITS! 2,098,003 VISITORS MADE 6 VISITS A DAY EVERY DAY. 63,330 UNIQUE VISITORS MADE 133,730 VISITS IN DECEMBER. WPCNR AVERAGED 17,284 VISITORS A WEEK, VISITING 31,270 TIMES.

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WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. June 8, 2012 UPDATED WITH VIDEO LINKS, JUNE 8, 2012, 1:33 P.M. E.D.T.: 

A massive food fight broke out in the White Plains High School cafeteria Thursday at lunchtime, instigated by members of the senior class.

It was reported to WPCNR by witnesses that cellphones were confiscated by school officials to prevent pictures and video being made of the incident. However, today  visual confirmation of the chaos may be seen on videos secretly shot inside the school at the food fight, posted on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5cOsNlWQn-U another YouTube video documenting the dangerous hall situation may be seen at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJ_KnuUpQZ8

According to Superintendent of  Schools, Dr. Christopher Clouet, yesterday in a written statement, Clouet wrote WPCNR:

“Yes, there was a “food fight/water balloon fight” …apparently as part of a “senior prank”. There were no fisticuffs and there were no arrests.Staff handled it quickly. Students returned to class and were dismissed without incident at the end of the day.

School will be open tomorrow!

I am disappointed that a small fraction of our students acted in an inappropriate way today. School administrators are investigating. We do anticipate that disciplinary action will be taken.”

White Plains Police units were called to the scene that witnesses said was dangerous

White Plains Commissioner of Public Safety, David Chong wrote WPCNR: “. Our School Resource Officer and a few patrol units and Community Affairs units responded to help out at the HIgh School. There are no reported arrests at this time.”

Parents learned of the incident when students returning home from White Plains High School this afternoon reported that the school was in lockdown from the lunch hour on. Students said rumors of a food fight to be staged were all over the halls of the school this morning, and when lunch hour began, students (alleged to be members of the senior class executing a senior prank) wearing masks launched a fusillade of balloons,(some balloons were said to be filled with urine) and food projectiles.

One witness said a student was hit near the eye with an apple launched by a slingshot and was taken to a hospital (THIS IS NOT CONFIRMED). Assistant Principal Dixon was seen covered in food.  

Custodians from other schools in the district were called in to clean up the mess in the cafeteria described as being awash in water, juices and emptied garbage. Witnesses said students were running out of the cafeteria to escape the out-of-control situation at the height of the melee. Witnesses said students slipped and fell on the soaking cafeteria floors, the mess was that bad.

All appeared quiet as of 4:30 P.M.

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WPCNR CITY HALL CIRCUIT. JUNE 7, 2012:

The White Plains Commissioner of Planning for  the last ten years  will retire effective August 8, the Journal News reported today.

Commissioner of Planning Susan Habel. speaking Monday evening at the Common Council meeting. No announcement of her impending retirement was made at the meeting by the Mayor or city officials. She will retire in August.

Habel has been with the city since 1985 when she joined the Planning Department, and was appointed Commissioner in 2002 under the Joseph Delfino administration, replacing Michael Graessle. Habel crafted the zoning that transformed the city downtown from 2003 to 2008 in what was known as the “White Plains Renaissance.”

Mayor Thomas Roach gave this quote to the Journal News on Habel’s legacy:

“Sue has been an invaluable resource to the city of White Plains and to me personally. Her dedication is apparent. She literally lived her job. She leaves behind a legacy of strong work and a city changed for the better.”

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WPCNR PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE DAY. By the WPCNR ROVING PHOTOGRAPHER. JUNE 6, 2012: 

Playland hosted the ninth annual  Fleet and Equipment Day Tuesday, and hundreds of police officers, law enforcement managers came on down to watch state-of-the-art police cars, hazardous devices robots,  surveillance equipment and land-sea-rescue units were demonstrated.

Officers could also get to try out  the very hot police cruisers on the Playland obstacle course. The squeal of peel-outs and short-stops, tight turns and prowess of the officers at the wheel was better than “Law and Order.

Westchester County Educational  Safety Training sponsored the Trade Show all morning long.

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WPCNR FBI WIRE. From the Federal Bureau of Investigation. June 6, 2012:

According to the superseding information to which Kugel pled and other court filings:

Kugel was employed at BLMIS and Primex Trading N.A. LLC (“Primex”), its affiliated entity, from 2001 through December 11, 2008. Kugel’s responsibilities included budget forecasting for BLMIS’s Market Making and Proprietary Trading operations, overseeing the company’s health care plan, and reviewing and maintaining its internal employee records and related documents.

Kugel was aware that there were individuals on BLMIS’s payroll who did not work for the firm but who nevertheless received salaries and benefits, and he created and maintained false BLMIS employee records on their behalf. Specifically, Kugel was responsible for submitting an Annual Return (“Form 5500”) concerning BLMIS’s employee benefit plan to the United States Department of Labor (DOL). Form 5500 required Kugel to identify accurately the number of employees at the firm, but instead, he included a number of employees who, in fact, did not work there.

During his tenure at BLMIS, Kugel also charged more than $200,000 in personal expenses, including luxury clothes, jewelry, and vacations for himself and his family, to a corporate American Express card but did not report it as income on his tax returns.

***

Kugel, 38, faces a statutory maximum sentence of 19 years in prison. The breakdown of the maximum sentences for each of the charged offenses is set forth in the attached chart. Kugel is also subject to mandatory restitution and criminal forfeiture and faces criminal fines up to twice the gross gain or loss derived from the offense. Pursuant to the cooperation agreement entered into with the government, Kugel will forfeit at least $2.3 million. This forfeiture will be used to compensate victims of the fraud, consistent with applicable Department of Justice regulations.

Judge Swain set a sentencing date for Kugel of December 13, 2012 at 2:00 p.m.

Mr. Bharara praised the investigative work of the FBI, the IRS, and the DOL. He also thanked the Justice Department’s Labor-Management Racketeering Unit of the Organized Crime and Gang Section of the Criminal Division and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

These cases were brought in coordination with President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, on which Mr. Bharara serves as a Co-Chair of the Securities and Commodities Fraud Working Group. President Obama established the interagency Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force to wage an aggressive, coordinated, and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. The task force includes representatives from a broad range of federal agencies, regulatory authorities, inspectors general, and state and local law enforcement who, working together, bring to bear a powerful array of criminal and civil enforcement resources. The task force is working to improve efforts across the federal executive branch and, with state and local partners, to investigate and prosecute significant financial crimes, ensure just and effective punishment for those who perpetrate financial crimes, combat discrimination in the lending and financial markets, and recover proceeds for victims of financial crimes.

The case is being handled by the Office’s Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force. Assistant United States Attorneys Lisa A. Baroni, Julian J. Moore, Arlo Devlin-Brown, Barbara A. Ward, and Matthew L. Schwartz are in charge of the prosecution.

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WPCNR Report from the Westchester County District Attorney. June 1, 2012:

Janet DiFiore, Westchester County D.A.,  announced today that Eugene Lorino (DOB 02/22/51) of 3524 Hull Avenue, Bronx, New York, Richard Vale (DOB 05/05/66) of 2721 Barker Avenue, Bronx, New York and Carlos Burgos (DOB 12/26/67) of 1247 College Avenue, Bronx, New York were arraigned on an eleven count indictment charging them with:

·        one count of Robbery in the First Degree, a class “B” Violent Felony,

·        two counts of Burglary in the First Degree, class “B” Violent Felonies,

·        one count of Criminal Use of a Firearm in the First Degree, a class “B” Felony,

·        two counts of Burglary in the Second Degree, class “C” Felonies,

·        one count of Attempted Robbery in the First Degree, a class “C” Felony,

·        one count of Attempted Robbery in the Second Degree, a class “D” Felony,

·        one count of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, a class “D” Felony,

·        one count of Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the Third Degree, a class “D” Felony,

·        one count of Criminal Impersonation in the First Degree, a class “E” Felony.

On January 10^th, 2012 Lorino, along with Burgos and an unapprehended male, while displaying firearms, forced their way into the victim’s basement apartment at 22 Main Street in Hastings-on-Hudson.

The defendants believed that the victim had a large sum of United States Currency on the premises because of a potential business transaction in the Bronx that the victim had with Richard Vale and ultimately didn’t come to fruition.

After demanding the money, they went to a second apartment in the building where they tied up the victim and his family.

The defendants then attempted to gain access to a safe on the premises. Not being able to, they took approximately $7,000 in cash that was on hand and fled.

A four month long investigation ensued, lead by the Hastings-on-Hudson Police Department, assisted by investigators and prosecutors from the Organized Crime and Criminal Enterprise Bureau, Superior Court Trial Division of the District Attorney’s Office, the Westchester Intelligence Center and the NYPD.

Information was developed as to the movements and whereabouts of the defendants that ultimately lead to these individuals being taken into custody earlier this month.

“The investigation into this home invasion exemplifies how law enforcement in Westchester County can work seamlessly to respond, gather evidence, investigate, analyze and interpret information which ultimately led to arresting and charging these defendants with violent felonies.” said District Attorney Janet DiFiore after the defendants were arraigned on the indictment.

Bail was set at for $500,000 cash/bond for Vale, $750,000 cash/bond for Burgos and remand for Lorino.

Their next court date is scheduled for June 21st, 2012.

The defendants face a maximum of twenty five years in state prison.

Assistant District Attorney Joseph DiBenedetto of the Investigations Division and Assistant District Attorney Christine O’Connor of Superior Court Trial Division are prosecuting the case.