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Surveillance Video Promises "NYPD Corruption At Its Best"
By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 2, 2009
Modified Feb 2, 2009
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By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 2, 2009
Modified Feb 2, 2009
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A YouTube video titled "NYPD corruption at its best," depicts undercover NYPD officers stuffing cash in their pockets during a raid at embattled Staten Island bar "Beer Goggles" (MySpace). The surveillance tape was recorded back in November 2007 when cops busted the bar for promoting gambling; three employees were arrested but the charges were eventually dropped.
In the video, (see below), the officers are shown smashing a poker video game, counting cash on the bar, and putting it into their pockets. The NYPD's Internal Affairs Bureau investigated Sergeant William Lewis, a 24-year veteran, after the bar's landlord accused him of alerting Beer Goggles to the raid. After a five month investigation, he was suspended and charged with corruption last March.
Several cops from the raiding party testified against Lewis, and his lawyers introduced the surveillance tape to impeach the credibility of the raiders' testimony. But according to the Post, no "official determination has been made as to whether cops were simply doing their jobs," when they pocketed the money. $700 of vouchered cash was later returned to bar owner Chris Shaffer.
Tagged
video
corruption
nyc
cop
accused
nypd
staten island
bar
surveillance
stealing
money
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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