Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Mount Vernon Puts Controversial Detective On Desk Duty, Removes Others From Plainclothes Operations
By
George Joseph
Published Sep 8, 2020
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
George Joseph
Published Sep 8, 2020
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The Mount Vernon Police Department has put a controversial detective on desk duty, following Gothamist/WNYC’s publication of a video showing him conducting a strip search in an apartment in apparent violation of department rules.
“Pending investigation into possible violations of The Mount Vernon Police Department policy, Det. Camilo Antonini has been assigned to desk duty,” said Daniel Terry, a spokesman for the small Westchester County city, noting that the detective will be doing clerical work for the duration of the probe.
Detective Antonini conducted the strip search while executing a search warrant at an apartment on Fourth Avenue in 2017. Police rules say such searches should be done under supervision at a police facility, but footage shows the detective stripping off the underwear of a handcuffed man in his fifties and inspecting his anus while looking for drugs.
The announcement follows months of investigation by Gothamist/WNYC into a trove of secretly recorded phone calls made by a police whistleblower in Mount Vernon, which is one of the few majority-black cities in Westchester.
The calls implicate Antonini and several other narcotics officers in allegations of framing residents, teaming up with favored drug dealers, and assaulting residents in custody and in handcuffs.
Terry, the spokesman, also confirmed that all the officers accused of misconduct in the secret tapes have been removed from controversial plainclothes operations.
“Accountability and transparency is one of this administration’s top priorities,” Terry continued. “We will continue to rid the police department of any bad actors and build bridges of communication and trust within the community.”
Jesse Van Lew, an anti-violence activist with the group Save Mount Vernon, said the temporary changes were a good first step, but argued Antonini and the other officers accused of misconduct need to be fired.
“We want better. [In] no other community, this is going on, only in Mount Vernon. And why? Because we allow it,” he said. “We’re not allowing it no more. We’re going to address this front and center by any means.”
Detective Antonini did not respond to requests for comment.
Earlier this year, Glenn Scott, Mount Vernon’s new police commissioner, dissolved the department’s narcotics unit, following Gothamist/WNYC’s initial stories on misconduct complaints by the whistleblower and civilians. The department currently has several former narcotics officers under active investigation.
Listen to reporter George Joseph's radio story for WNYC:
This piece is part of an ongoing series on police corruption allegations in Mount Vernon, New York, and Westchester County. If you have a tip about a prosecutor's office, a law enforcement agency or the courts, email reporter George Joseph at [email protected]. He is also on Facebook, Twitter@georgejoseph94, and Instagram @georgejoseph81. You can also text or call him with tips at 929-486-4865. He is also on the encrypted phone app Signal with the same phone number.
Tagged
mount vernon
policing
George Joseph
George covers Brooklyn for THE CITY with a focus on criminal justice and housing. He previously worked for WNYC and Gothamist, and has published stories with NPR, ProPublica, Esquire, and The Intercept among other outlets.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Central Park birders, others remember 63-year-old woman killed in park
People who said they knew her described her as an artist and a familiar presence in the Ramble.
By
Charles Lane
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 7:04 p.m. ET
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
News
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .