NYPD rocked by massive corruption probe

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/04/05/nypd-ex-chief-could-be-named-co-conspirator-in-bribery-trial/

NYPD ex-chief could be named co-conspirator in bribery trial
By Kaja Whitehouse
April 5, 2018 | 6:39pm

Philip Banks (center) with Jeremy Reichberg (left) and Jona Rechnitz
Baruch Ezagui


The NYPD’s ex-Chief of Department Philip Banks could be named as an unindicted co-conspirator at the upcoming NYPD bribery trial involving former de Blasio donor Jeremy Reichberg, it emerged on Thursday.

Banks’ name has yet to come up specifically, but a reference was made to him at a hearing on Thursday when a lawyer for Reichberg complained that the defense is only now getting email evidence tied “unindicted co-conspirators” in the case, including “Chief-1 and Detective-1.”

“Chief-1” is Banks, who retired in 2014, and “Detective-1” is Michael Milici, who was dismissed in 2016, sources told The Post.

The Manhattan US Attorney’s office declined to comment.

Prosecutor Martin Bell didn’t deny that “Chief-1” and “Detective-1” might be named as unindicted co-conspirators. He only said that allegations tied to Reichberg’s efforts to bribe as-yet-unnamed NYPD officers will “come in as background” at the trial, including through testimony by government witness Jona Rechnitz.

“Phil Banks has never been charged with any crime whatsoever, and that will not change despite the government gratuitously referring to him as an unindicted co-conspirator,” said Banks’ attorney Ben Brafman.

A lawyer for Milici didn’t immediately return a request for comment.

Neither men have been charged with any crimes.

Reichberg and his co-defendant, former NYPD officer James Grant, were scheduled to go to trial on April 30th. But the judge on Thursday said he plans to delay the trial by at least a week amid bickering by the lawyers.

Rechnitz, who began cooperating with the feds in 2016, has already testified to some of the bribes he and Reichberg allegedly provided Banks and Milici.

At the corruption trial of former NYC correction officers’ union head Norman Seabrook, Rechnitz said Reichberg bought a hooker for Grant and Milici during a trip to Las Vegas to watch the Super Bowl.

Rechnitz and Reichberg also treated Banks with steak dinners and a trip to Israel in exchange for “access” to 1 Police Plaza, the real estate developer said last year.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/04/23/ponzi-schemer-may-have-scammed-mobster-out-of-100k/

Ponzi schemer may have scammed mobster out of $60K
By Bruce Golding and Reuven Fenton
April 23, 2018 | 1:25am | Updated

Hamlet Peralta
WireImage


Prison might be the safest place for Ponzi schemer Hamlet Peralta.

Peralta, whose $12 million fraud helped crack the NYPD corruption scandal, shortchanged a reputed mobster from whom he borrowed $100,000, according to an FBI affidavit.

Wiretaps of Peralta’s cellphone caught him twice calling the Park Side Restaurant in Corona, Queens, on March 7, 2015, and asking for “Tony,” who the feds identified as eatery owner and reputed Genovese crime-family captain Anthony “Tough Tony” Federici, Special Agent Joseph Downs wrote the following month.

During the first call, the affidavit filed in Manhattan federal court says, Peralta told Federici he had “a $40,000 certified check for you right now,” adding: “I’m sending my guy to you with the check.”

Peralta also promised Federici the other $60,000 by March 9, and lamented that “Sammy is going to kill me,” in reference to Sammy Tsioumas, who Downs described as a “longtime associate” of Federici’s.

About three hours later, Peralta called back and Federici told him, “I got the check.”

But Peralta didn’t keep his word about paying the rest, because on March 13, the feds recorded Tsioumas telling him, “Tony is putting a lot of pressure on me.”

When Peralta insisted that “the money is coming in either tonight or tomorrow,” Tsioumas responded that money wasn’t the issue, and that Federici was very upset because Peralta wasn’t returning calls.

Peralta said he’d compensate Federici for dodging him and later mentioned 10 bottles of Remy Martin Louis XIII cognac, which sells for more than $3,000 a bottle, the affidavit says.

But Peralta was still on the hook as of April 20, when a wiretap caught him promising to pay Tsioumas the next day.

Federici declined to comment Sunday.

“I don’t know anything about that,” he said. “If you want a sandwich, I’ll give you a sandwich,” he added before muttering an expletive and storming inside his restaurant.

But Tsioumas later said Federici agreed to loan Peralta $100,000 to finance the purchase of liquor for a planned Bronx strip club after Tsioumas introduced the two in the fall of 2014.

Peralta was supposed to repay the money, interest-free, two months later, but never coughed up anything beyond the initial $40,000, Tsioumas said.

“I started calling Hamlet. He said, ‘I’m going to give you the rest of the money this week.’ And that was it. He just disappeared. And that’s when he got arrested,” Tsioumas said.

“This guy was a sweet talker . . . Everybody got a little bamboozled there.”

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/04/23/probe-of-ex-nypd-chiefs-finances-grew-out-of-liquor-ponzi-scheme/

Probe of ex-NYPD chief’s finances grew out of liquor Ponzi scheme
By Bruce Golding and Shawn Cohen
April 23, 2018 | 12:40am

Philip Banks (L) and Jona Rechnitz
Baruch Ezagui


The FBI investigation of ex-NYPD Chief of Department Philip Banks grew out of a probe into a suspected liquor-wholesaling scam that turned out to be a $12 million Ponzi scheme.

The feds began investigating businessman Hamlet Peralta over suspicions he was selling “stolen . . . untaxed” booze and was engaged in financial chicanery to cover up funding provided by Banks, confessed cop briber Jona Rechnitz and others, according to an FBI affidavit.

Peralta has admitted he conned a dozen investors.

The case led to a wiretap of Rechnitz’s cellphone, and he secretly pleaded guilty as part of a cooperation deal in June 2016 — two months after The Post revealed the FBI probe.

Last year, Rechnitz was the star witness at the corruption trial of former correction-officers-union chief Norman Seabrook that ended in a hung jury.

Rechnitz is also set to testify next month against ex-NYPD Inspector James Grant and Jeremy Reichberg, a former pal of Rechnitz and a fellow fund-raiser for Mayor de Blasio, in an alleged bribery scheme that involves a 2013 private-plane trip to Las Vegas with a hooker.

Banks may be identified during that trial as an “unindicted co-conspirator,” a defense lawyer said in court earlier this month.

A co-defendant in that case, former NYPD Deputy Chief Michael Harrington, struck a plea deal in March for zero to six months in prison.

Harrington had worked under Banks, and a senior law-enforcement official briefed on the federal investigation said prosecutors “wanted Harrington to cooperate and give up Banks.”

“But Harrington never flipped,” the official said. “That ended the possibility of going against Banks.”

Three other ex-cops — Paul Dean, Robert Espinel and Gaetano “Guy” Valastro — are awaiting trial in an unrelated bribery scheme in which the payoffs allegedly included “food, alcohol, parties, dancers and prostitutes.”

Five high-ranking NYPD officials retired after being warned they would face disciplinary charges of accepting illegal gifts, sources have told The Post.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/04/22/fbi-eyed-former-nypd-chiefs-mystery-money/

Former NYPD chief had $300K in mystery money
By Bruce Golding
April 22, 2018 | 10:46pm | Updated

Philip Banks and Jona Rechnitz
Baruch Ezagui


A man who was once the highest-ranking uniformed officer in the NYPD avoided charges in a corruption scandal that rocked the department — even though his bank records revealed some $300,000 in transactions that the FBI called the hallmarks of “money laundering,” The Post has learned.

The feds’ investigation turned up surveillance photos that show former Chief of Department Philip Banks making some of the deposits, while other photos show “at least one other person, whom the FBI has not been able to identify, making deposits into these accounts,” according to a sworn affidavit filed in Manhattan federal court.

“The investigation has not uncovered any legitimate source for this income in BANKS’s or his spouse’s accounts, which far exceeds both his NYPD salary and the rental income he received from properties he owns, and which also far exceeds his spouse’s salary as a nurse,” FBI Special Agent Joseph Downs wrote in the filed affidavit.

Downs’ affidavit was part of an application for a cellphone wiretap that was approved on Oct. 30, 2014 — one day before Banks stunned the city by abruptly rejecting a promotion to first deputy commissioner and instead announcing his retirement from the NYPD.

At the time, Banks said he quit because the new job “would take me away from where I could make the greatest contribution: the police work and operations that I love so much.”

The mystery transactions involved “numerous accounts” controlled by Banks and his wife, Vonda Smith, and were made between 2007 and 2013, according to the affidavit.

During that time, Banks served as executive officer of Patrol Borough Brooklyn South, commander of Patrol Borough Manhattan North and chief of community affairs before his 2013 promotion to chief.

Banks’ annual salary in that post was $201,096, payroll records show. hmy:

His cash deposits and withdrawals were often made in “small increments,” according to the affidavit, which cites seven deposits, ranging from $520 to $1,200 each, that Banks made on four dates between Aug. 26 and Nov. 3, 2013.

Someone else also deposited $1,540 and $60, respectively, into two of Banks’ accounts on Sept. 8, 2013, the affidavit says.

The “volume and pattern” of the banking activity, along with other evidence, “is indicative of the Subject Offense of money laundering,” Downs wrote.

“Specifically, based on my training and experience, and participation in this investigation, I know that individuals who wish to conceal the illegal sources of financial proceeds often make efforts to conceal those proceeds by engaging in financial transactions with banks or by having third parties engage in such transactions that hide the true source of the proceeds of unlawful activity,” he said.

Downs’ affidavit was one of at least five that were submitted to judges as part of a sprawling investigation into what turned out to be a $12 million Ponzi scheme run by former Harlem restaurant owner Hamlet Peralta, who last year pleaded guilty to wire fraud and is serving a five-year prison sentence.

The affidavits don’t detail when the feds began investigating Banks, but a Jan. 10, 2015, filing reveals that the Manhattan US Attorney’s Office asked the IRS to join the probe in August 2014, citing the “unexplained cash deposits into the accounts of Banks and his wife.”

The IRS agreed the following December, Downs wrote, noting that tax investigators found Banks owned three properties in Queens: his family home and two others that “appeared to the IRS to be single-family residences that may have been subdivided for use as rental properties.”

Banking records showed that between 2007 and 2013, Banks’ tenants gave him money orders and checks for more than $245,000 in rent — none of which he reported to the IRS, the affidavit says.

The feds said that rental income was separate from the mysterious deposits.

“BANKS also did not report as income the hundreds of thousands of dollars in unexplained cash deposits reflected on the bank records, as described in the Prior Applications,” Downs wrote.

In addition, during “certain tax years between 2007 and 2012,” Banks and his wife apparently reduced their tax bills by not filing their returns as “married filing jointly or married filing separately,” the affidavit says.

“Instead, they each filed separately as ‘head of household,’ and BANKS’s wife falsely listed her address as the address of one of the properties that BANKS in fact rented out to other tenants, where BANKS’s wife did not in fact live,” Downs wrote.

At some point, Banks allegedly invested $250,000 with Jona Rechnitz, a former fundraiser for Mayor Bill de Blasio who later pleaded guilty to a corruption charge as part of a cooperation deal with the feds.

And on Dec. 16, 2014, the affidavit says, IRS agents served a subpoena on Banks’ tax preparer, sparking a flurry of calls and text messages between Banks and Rechnitz.

The following Feb. 6, Banks was caught on wiretap allegedly telling Rechnitz that he had been informed he wouldn’t likely face tax charges because “everything is really in [Banks’] wife’s name” and that the punishment was “just going to be a penalty.”

Rechnitz — who last year testified that he lost about $500,000 in Peralta’s Ponzi scheme, of which only $150,000 was his own money — was later caught on a March, 6, 2015, wiretap telling his dad, Los Angeles developer Robert Rechnitz, that he gave Banks’ money back, along with a “nice return” of 5 percent interest, according to an affidavit filed the following month.

Downs wrote that the FBI believed Rechnitz repaid Banks — with interest — even though he hadn’t been paid by Peralta because he was worried about IRS scrutiny of Banks.

The US Attorney’s Office declined to say why it didn’t bring charges against Banks.

But a senior law enforcement official who was briefed on the investigation said, “It certainly looked to me, based on the descriptions, that they had a structuring case” — which involves depositing small amounts of cash to avoid detection — and “potential money laundering and tax evasion.”

But the official said prosecutors “did not feel they had anything that could stick in court and convict Banks.”

“At the end of the day, they felt that it’s very easy to get an indictment but you have to prove it in court,” the official said.

Banks, 55, seemed stunned when The Post confronted him at his home Sunday afternoon with the allegations contained in the affidavits. He began shaking and his eyes welled up with tears before he said, “No, I have no comment.”

Banks also said his wife had no comment and referred The Post to his lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, who said the tax case was “resolved with no prosecution.”

Brafman also said the money at issue came from an inheritance, rent payments and “poker games,” but declined to answer other questions.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/04/23/fbi-listened-in-as-lawyer-chatted-with-shady-de-blasio-donor/

FBI listened in as lawyer chatted with shady de Blasio donor
By Bruce Golding
April 23, 2018 | 10:19pm

Benjamin Brafman
Reuters


The FBI was listening in as attorney Benjamin Brafman chatted with a cop-bribing Mayor de Blasio donor — later telling a judge it involved potential NYPD corruption, and citing the late mob boss John Gotti as a precedent.

Brafman — whose clients have included rapper Jay-Z, mobster Vincent “The Chin” Gigante, and most recently, Harvey Weinstein — was recorded as he chatted with Jona Rechnitz, whose cell phone was wiretapped as part of a probe involving ex-NYPD Chief of Department Philip Banks.

The Jan. 15, 2015 wiretap was disclosed in an FBI affidavit filed in Manhattan federal court.

At the time, Brafman was representing Banks in an IRS investigation into more than $500,000 in undeclared income, including about $300,000 worth of deposits into bank accounts controlled by Banks and his wife.

Banks was also suspected by the FBI of having invested $250,000 through Rechnitz with Harlem restaurant owner Hamlet Peralta, who had ties to several high-ranking cops and later pleaded guilty to running a $12 million Ponzi scheme.

Rechnitz pleaded guilty to paying off cops and other officials in exchange for favors, and is set to testify as the star witness at next month’s corruption trial of ex- NYPD Deputy Inspector James Grant and fellow de Blasio donor Jeremy Reichberg.

During their conversation, Rechnitz told Brafman he was “calling you really just to calm me down” following a conversation that FBI agents saw Rechnitz have with Banks outside the Prime KO kosher steakhouse on the Upper West Side the night before, according to the affidavit by Special Agent Joseph Downs.

Rechnitz said Banks told him that “they’re doing this because they’re looking into someone else…maybe Hamlet cause of the plane,” an apparent reference to a December 2013 trip to the Dominican Republic by Rechnitz, Banks and Peralta, Downs wrote.

“Based on what I know, it has nothing to do with you and based on what I know it has to do with him (Banks) and it’s a personal tax issue that has nothing to do with business,” Brafman told Rechnitz, the filing says.

The feds are generally precluded from secretly listening in on lawyers and their clients, but Downs said the agent monitoring the conversation didn’t stop, adding: “The decision was a reasonable one.”

Downs noted that Brafman and Rechnitz had “no known attorney-client relationship,” and even if they did, “the conversation is still not privileged because the crime-fraud exception applies.”

“Specifically, to the extent the conversation relates to ‘contemplated or ongoing criminal or fraudulent conduct — such as the repayment of the $250,000 investment Banks made with Rechnitz to avoid detection — ‘[t]he crime-fraud exception’ effectively ‘strips the privilege’ from the communication,” Downs wrote.

To bolster that claim, Downs cited a 1991 ruling against the Teflon Don. Gotti’s secretly recorded conversations with lawyers were ruled admissible because attorney-client privilege doesn’t cover “communications made for the purpose of committing a crime, regardless of whether the attorney was aware that he was being consulted for that purpose.”

Banks, who retired in 2014, has never been charged with a crime, and Brafman has said his tax case was “resolved with no prosecution.”

In the Rechnitz call, Brafman also said Peralta “is not cooperating,” even though the Manhattan District Attorney’s office wanted him to, the affidavit says.

He knew that because Peralta was repped by lawyer Alex Spiro, then an associate in Brafman’s firm, Downs wrote.

In another affidavit, Downs detailed a March 8, 2015, chat between Rechnitz, his wife and his father, LA developer Robert Rechnitz, during which the dad said he had dinner with Brafman.

“Rechnitz’s father said they were in ‘good shape’ to have ‘Ben on both guys,” meaning that it was good that Brafman represented Banks and Peralta,” Downs wrote.

The FBI also believed the “good shape” remark meant Brafman would help prevent Banks and Peralta from cooperating with law enforcement, Downs added.

From the federal prison in Fort Dix, N.J. where he’s serving a five-year sentence, Peralta on Monday accused Brafman of violating attorney-confidentiality rules on the call.

“Ben was protecting Jona, giving him all the information and finding a plan to throw me under the bus,” he told The Post.

Brafman said Monday that Peralta authorized him to tell Rechnitz he wasn’t cooperating, and Peralta’s claim otherwise was “not true.”

He also called the FBI’s belief that he would keep Peralta and Banks from cooperating “a speculative conclusion ​by agents​,​ with no bas​i​s in fact​.”

Brafman said he’s been acquainted with Robert Rechnitz for more than a decade, and spoke with his son because “I was trying my best to keep [him] from imploding.”

“I felt bad for him because he was a young kid and I was hoping he wouldn’t get in trouble,” he said.

Brafman also said his dinner meeting with the elder Rechnitz involved “trying to convince the father” of the potential peril Jona faced.

“I wanted his father to under​stand that Jona was, in my opinion, headed for legal trouble if he did not stop handing around with all the people he was hanging around with​,” Brafman said.

The FBI’s New York field office didn’t return a message and the Manhattan US Attorney’s Office — which filed Downs’ affidavits in court — declined to comment.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/04/23/ex-nypd-chief-allegedly-chose-retirement-to-dodge-background-check/

Ex-NYPD chief allegedly chose retirement to dodge background check
By Shawn Cohen and Bruce Golding
April 23, 2018 | 8:54pm | Updated

Philip Banks
David McGlynn


Former NYPD Chief of Department Philip Banks abruptly retired to avoid a background check that was part of his planned promotion to first deputy commissioner, The Post has learned.

“He figured out that in order for him to go from a four-star uniformed officer to a four-star civilian, he’d have to go through a background investigation,” a source familiar with the matter said Monday.

“That’s what caused him to pull his papers.”

The source spoke hours after The Post revealed that Banks’ surprise retirement came a day after a judge approved a FBI wiretap that was part of a sprawling investigation in which the feds found more than $300,000 in “unexplained” cash deposits into Banks’ accounts.

Banking records also showed he had received more than $245,000 in rental income from two Queens properties — but didn’t report that money or the cash to the IRS, according to an FBI affidavit filed in Manhattan federal court.

The source said Banks didn’t want to go through a background check by the Department of Investigation “for obvious reasons.”

He would have to disclose all his financial relationships, documents on all the property he owned. That all would have been explored,” the sources said.

At the time he quit, Banks publicly claimed it was because the new job “would take me away from where I could make the greatest contribution: the police work and operations that I love so much.”

But in an interview Monday, Banks, who is black, said the real reason was because then-Police Commissioner Bill Bratton’s “old-boy network” was “all white males” — and the top cop wanted “a local black just to color him.”

“He was using me,” Banks said.

“This n—-r was going to be his f–king puppet. I saw this act before.” :cough:

The job of first deputy commissioner went to Benjamin Tucker, who is also black.

Banks — who began shaking uncontrollably and was on the verge of tears Sunday when The Post asked him about the FBI investigation — also said he told Bratton he’d only take the post if Bratton gave him authority over the chief of department.

Traditionally, chiefs of department report directly to the police commissioner, but Bratton made an exception when the late John Timoney, who was white, served as his first deputy commissioner.

Banks — who was never charged with any crimes by the feds — also adamantly denied that he quit to avoid a probe of his finances by the city Department of Investigation.

“I beat the IRS investigation, the U.S. Attorney investigation and the FBI investigation. They found nothing. Why would I be concerned about a DOI investigation?
he said.

“I would have passed that DOI bulls–t investigation.”

Bratton didn’t return messages seeking comment.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/04/23/cops-had-to-ask-de-blasio-donor-over-nypd-transfers-prosecutor/

Cops had to ask de Blasio donor about NYPD transfers: prosecutor
By Kaja Whitehouse
April 23, 2018 | 8:16pm | Updated

Jeremy Reichberg
Gregory P. Mango


A Mayor de Blasio donor had so much pull at the NYPD that cops had to turn to the businessman for help with internal police transfers, Manhattan federal prosecutors said Monday.

Manhattan federal prosecutors said they plan to introduce evidence at Jeremy Reichberg’s upcoming bribery trial about five NYPD officers whose job transfers tied back to the moneyman, who together with his pal Jona Rechnitz, helped raise at least $100,000 for de Blasio’s mayoral bid.

Reichberg had the pull to recommend job transfers at the NYPD through through Michael Harrington, retired deputy chief and right-hand man to then-Chief of Department Philip Banks, according to prosecutor Kimberly Ravener.

Ravener also linked Reichberg’s alleged co-conspirator, retired NYPD Deputy Inspector James Grant, to the alleged scheme, saying he was the one who tapped Reichberg to make transfer requests for the five unnamed officers.

“Mr. Grant is going to a civilian, Mr. Reichberg, to have people moved around at the NYPD,” Ravener said. “After Mr. Grant made those requests (to Reichberg) those changes came through,” she said.

The allegations echo statements from Reichberg’s former pal Jona Rechnitz, who has previously said that he and Reichberg helped get Grant promoted and transferred to a better job — thanks to their pull with Banks.

“Jeremy and I really spoke to Phil Banks on a regular basis about promoting him (Grant) and transferring him to a better police precinct, which indeed did happen. He became an inspector,” Rechnitz told a federal jury at a separate corruption trial last year.

Rechnitz went on to testify that he believed he and Reichberg were responsible for Grant’s promotion because Banks allowed them to call Grant with the news.

“Phil allowed us to tell him the good news, and he said: I took care of your boy,” Rechnitz testified at the corruption trial of former union boss Norman Seabrook.

Harrington has pleaded guilty in the case. Banks was never charged with any wrongdoing.

Grant stands accused of acting as a rent-a-cop to Reichberg and Rechnitz in exchange for bribes. Prosecutors say Grant provided police escorts, gun permits and other favors in exchange for a private jet trip to Las Vegas for the Super Bowl, a two-night stay in a hotel in Rome and jewelry.

Grant and Reichberg are scheduled to go to trial on May 7.

But Judge Gregory Woods told defense lawyers they could delay the trial — for a second time — amid complaints about late-breaking evidence, including videos Rechnitz made of police escorts he and Reichberg took, complete with police sirens and lights.

Reichberg said he would need to consult with his rabbi for deciding whether or not to delay the trial.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/04/26/feds-want-cop-in-bribe-string-to-testify-at-nypd-trial/

Feds want cop in bribe sting to testify at NYPD trial
By Shawn Cohen and Kaja Whitehouse
April 26, 2018 | 10:08pm | Updated

James Grant
Erik Thomas/NY Post


Manhattan federal prosecutors have quietly called for a new witness to take the stand in their upcoming NYPD bribery trial involving two Mayor de Blasio donors, The Post has learned.

NYPD Officer Joseph Vitella, who secretly helped take down a Borough Park police liaison for bribing cops, has been ordered to be ready to testify at the trial of former Deputy Inspector James Grant, who stands accused of acting at the behest of de Blasio donors Jeremy Reichberg and Jona Rechnitz.

Vitella worked in the 66th Precinct alongside Grant, who is alleged to have taken bribes from Reichberg, his co-defendant, and Rechnitz, the government’s key witness, sources told The Post.

In 2016, Vitella helped the FBI nab Borough Park police liaison Alex “Shaya” Lichtenstein, who is serving a 2½-year sentence for bribing cops in exchange for difficult-to-obtain gun permits.

Vitella was approached by Lichtenstein in April 2016, sources said. Vitella then secretly recorded the Brooklyn businessman offering him as much as $6,000 per gun license and bragging that he had already used his NYPD connections to obtain 150 gun licenses.

Vitella, a community- *affairs officer on track to retire at the end of May, balked when he received the order to testify, according to a police source.

“He was under the impression that his involvement in this whole thing was done,” the source said. “He didn’t want to go but he understands he had no choice.”

Vitella declined to comment. His Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association lawyer also declined to comment.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/04/29/unindicted-co-conspirators-named-in-nypd-corruption-case/

‘Unindicted co-conspirators’ named in NYPD corruption case
By Bruce Golding and Stephanie Pagones
April 29, 2018 | 8:33pm | Updated

Ex-NYPD Chief of Department Philip Banks is among a slew of current and former ex-cops named by the feds as “unindicted co-conspirators” in a pending police corruption case.

Prosecution court papers say Banks “influenced” the 2014 promotion of former Deputy Inspector James Grant — who faces trial next month — as well as that of ex-Det. Michael Milici, who’s also listed among the alleged co-conspirators.

The Friday filing says Banks also influenced the transfers of about six other cops and helped arrange a police escort for a pal of Jona Rechnitz, a former fund-raiser for Mayor de Blasio-turned-prosecution witness.

According to a previously filed FBI affidavit, Rechnitz was caught on a 2015 wiretap talking to fellow de Blasio donor and Grant co-defendant Jeremy Reichberg, who said that with Banks’ help “we got Jimmy promoted.”

The allegations against Banks all involve a former subordinate, ex-Deputy Chief Michael Harrington, who had been scheduled to stand trial with Grant until he scored a sweetheart plea bargain last month.

They also came days after The Post exclusively revealed that an FBI investigation found about $300,000 in “unexplained” cash deposits into Banks’ accounts between 2007 and 2013.

Banks, who retired rather than accept a promotion to first deputy commissioner amid the probe — was never charged in connection with the undeclared mystery transactions or another $245,000 in rental income he didn’t report to the IRS.

The designation “unindicted co-conspirator” refers to someone that prosecutors believe was involved in an illegal scheme, but opted not to charge with a crime.

Grant is charged with providing official favors in exchange for gifts and other payoffs from Rechnitz and Reichberg, including a 2013 group trip to Las Vegas with a hooker dressed up like a flight attendant. Sources have told The Post that Milici was among those aboard the private plane.

The filing does not mention the mile-high sexcapade, but alleges Milici and another unindicted co-conspirator, Lt. Michael Andreano once went to Reichberg’s home “in order to reprimand a neighbor’s contractor.”

In addition to Andreano, two others on the list — Deputy Chief James McCarthy and Inspector Brian McGinn — are still active-duty cops, according to the NYPD.

The list also includes three former high-ranking cops — ex-deputy chiefs Andrew Capul, David Colon and Eric Rodriguez — who retired rather than face disciplinary charges.

Also named is Floral Park (LI) Police Commissioner Stephen McAllister, a retired NYPD cop, who’s accused of “interference” in three arrests of an unidentified Reichberg associate in 2014 and 2015.

McAllister’s name first surfaced in connection with alleged corruption during last year’s trial of former correction union president Norman Seabrook, when Rechnitz said McAllister was among several cops he flew to Miami for a 2013 college football championship game — and “entertainment” by prostitutes.

Banks’ lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, said that Banks “has never been charged with any criminal offense, nor has he ever even been interviewed by either the government or the defense.”

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/04/30/police-commissioner-kept-245k-job-amid-hooker-allegations/

Police commissioner kept $245K job amid hooker allegations
By Bruce Golding
April 30, 2018 | 11:03pm | Updated

Stephen McAllister
Victoralcorn.com


The police commissioner of a small Long Island village got reappointed to his cushy $245,000-a-year post amid allegations he took an all-expenses-paid trip that included hookers, court records show.

Stephen McAllister, first appointed top cop in Floral Park in 2010, was voted in for a fifth term as head of the 35-member police force on April 2, according to official minutes.

That was just three weeks before McAllister — who pulls down $19,000 more annually than Big Apple Police Commissioner James O’Neill — was named an unindicted co-conspirator by the feds in an NYPD corruption scandal that will soon head to court. (O’Neill oversees a force of some 36,000 cops.)

The records don’t show any discussion before the vote, even though McAllister was the subject of an internal probe last year over testimony that he joined two NYPD cops and others who flew to Miami in 2013 for a college football championship game.

Admitted cop-briber and former Mayor Bill de Blasio donor Jona Rechnitz said he paid for “everything from A to Z on that trip,” including an evening of “entertainment” by prostitutes.

McAllister was cleared of wrongdoing by the village probe, but federal prosecutors on Friday implicated him in the corruption case against ex-NYPD Deputy Inspector James Grant and former de Blasio donor Jeremy Reichberg, set for trial this month.

Court papers allege that McAllister — a retired NYPD inspector — interfered with three arrests of an unidentified Reichberg associate on Feb. 16, 2014, and on Oct. 28 and Dec. 16, 2015.

Prosecutors said Reichberg gave McAllister “gifts that appear to have included event tickets, discounted or free jewelry, a ride on Rechnitz’s private plane, and home improvements.

“In exchange, on at least one occasion, Reichberg sought and obtained [McAllister’s] assistance in releasing a person who had been arrested,” according to the March 12 fed filing.

In addition, Rechnitz was named a Floral Park police chaplain, which let him score a “law-enforcement parking placard” and outfit his car with “lights and sirens,” the feds said.

McAllister received his sixth raise last year, when the village board boosted his annual salary by $55,000 because he was denied a waiver to continue drawing his NYPD pension, The Island Now website reported.

Asked about the decision to reappoint McAllister, Floral Park Mayor Dominick Longobardi said that “at the time, yes, we all agreed that it was the best thing and the best for the residents.”

McAllister didn’t return requests for comment. His lawyer, Joel Weiss, said McAllister “has not done anything illegal whatsoever” and “has not abused his authority in any manner whatsoever.”

Weiss called Rechnitz an “inveterate liar” and said that “the upcoming trial will prove he is an unreliable source.”

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/05/11/shomrin-leader-pleads-not-guilty-to-statutory-rape/

Shomrin leader pleads not guilty to statutory rape
By Jennifer Bain and Larry Celona
May 11, 2018 | 4:55pm

Jacob Daskal
R. Umar Abbasi


Shamed Shomrin big Jacob “Yanky” Daskal pleaded not guilty to felony statutory rape charges Friday, a day after he was accused of repeatedly having sex with a 15-year-old girl inside his Borough Park home.

The politically-connected Daskal, who helped start his ultra-Orthodox neighborhood’s civilian safety patrol some 30 years ago, was then released on a $75,000 bail bond.

A prosecutor revealed in Brooklyn Supreme Court that the DA has possession of a controlled call that implicates Daskal.

Speaking at a brief afternoon arraignment, Assistant District Attorney Kevin O’Donnell did not further describe the call or elaborate on Daskal’s relationship with the girl, except to say, “The parties are known to each other.”

The prosecutor also did not say how the shocking sex allegations surfaced. But a law enforcement source told The Post on Friday that the girl had made the allegations to a therapist, who then told police.

A grand jury has indicted Daskal on two top charges of rape in the third degree for allegedly having sex with a victim under the age of 17. That charge alone carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 1 to 4 years prison.

He is additionally facing eight lesser charges: four counts of criminal sexual act in the third degree, six counts of sexual misconduct, six counts of sexual abuse in the third degree and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child.

The sex offences occurred at Daskal’s home on 46th Street, in August through October of 2017, according to the indictment against him.

Daskal was handcuffed and remained silent, with head bowed, as his lawyer, Evan Lipton, entered a not guilty plea on his behalf.

He looked disheveled after a night in custody; his black suit was rumpled and his yarmulke was slightly askew.

He was asked by Justice Deborah Dowling whether he understood that he cannot obtain a new passport while he remains free on bail.

“Understand,” he answered in a clear, strong voice.

The prosecutor said that the DA’s office is ready for trial.

“Will I get my phones back?” he could be heard asking his lawyer as he left court.

“No,” Lipton answered. “Your phones have been seized.”

Six women and two men sat together at the arraignment, leaving with Daskal.

While Daskal was arraigned, his home became a crime scene.

Three detectives from the NYPD Crime Scene Unit spent much of the afternoon inside, searching his phone and computer records for incriminating communications, photos and videos.

Meanwhile, outside, onlookers in the largely Hasidic neighborhood stood watching in disbelief.

“He is a good man, surely this is not true!” one shocked neighbor, an older man, said.

Daskal’s next court date is June 28.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/05/10/shomrim-leader-charged-with-raping-15-year-old-girl/

Politically connected Shomrim leader charged with raping 15-year-old girl
By Tina Moore, Carl Campanile and Max Jaeger
May 10, 2018 | 3:29pm | Updated

Jacob Daskal was charged with raping a 15-year-old girl.
Christopher Gregory


The politically connected president of the Boro Park Shomrim safety patrol was arrested on charges that he repeatedly raped a 15-year-old girl inside his Brooklyn home, police said Thursday.

Jacob “Yanky” Daskal, 59, a major donor to multiple campaigns, was picked up at about 12:30 p.m. at his home on 46th Street, where he allegedly *attacked the teen between *August and November 2017, police said.

Investigators are probing whether the abuse lasted longer, according to sources.

Insiders say Daskal has friends in high places and claim his political largesse got him in tight with elected *officials.

“He’s a well-connected guy. In Borough Park, he’s a big deal — a macher,” or important person, said one insider who requested anonymity, noting that Daskal is particularly close to retiring Assemblyman Dov Hikind.

“It comes a complete shock. This is nuts. Yanky Daskal has grandkids.”

Campaign-finance records show he wasn’t afraid to splash cash for his favorite political causes.

He dropped $1,000 on Mayor de Blasio’s 2009 public-advocate bid and has given nearly $9,300 to Hikind since 2004, according to state campaign-finance records listing his name and Borough Park address.

He tossed $1,000 to corrupt former state Sen. Malcolm Smith in 2008 and has lavished a little over $4,500 into state Sen. Simcha Felder’s campaign coffers since 2007, the records show.

Someone named Jacob Daskal also gave $250 to de Blasio’s 2003 City Council campaign, according to city records listing a name but no address.

Meanwhile, pols were funneling cash into the Boro Park Shomrim volunteer safety group over which he presided.

The organization reaped $425,708 in eight city contracts alone between 2010 and 2015, according to Politico New York.

City records indicate Daskal works as a principal at G & J Realty.

The company is registered to Daskal’s 46th Street address, state business records show.

Daskal is being charged with felony third-degree rape, as well as forcible touching, sex abuse, criminal sex act and acting in a manner injurious to a child under 17, police said.

Neighbors were surprised, though not all had glowing things to say about him.

“He isn’t nice. He puts his garbage on my sidewalk and leaves it out. Nasty man,” said one who asked not to be identified.

A woman who answered the intercom at Daskal’s home declined to comment.

Hikind and the Boro Park Shomrim did not return a request for comment.

The Boro Park Shomrim has been embroiled in an NYPD gun-permit-fixing scandal with tendrils that reached police brass and two de Blasio donors, although Daskal has not been charged in that case.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/05/11/shomr...-teen-caught-on-recorded-call-with-victim-da/

Shomrim leader accused of raping teen caught on recorded call with victim: DA
By Jennifer Bain, Larry Celona and Laura Italiano
May 11, 2018 | 9:47pm | Updated

Jacob “Yanky” Daskal, 59, who helped found the neighborhood Boro Park Shomrim patrol group some 30 years ago, knew his victim prior to the alleged attacks, prosecutors said.

The major campaign donor pleaded not guilty at his Friday arraignment in Brooklyn Supreme Court and quickly posted $75,000 bond.

At the brief hearing, prosecutors said they set up and recorded a phone call earlier this week between Daskal and the young girl he is accused of sexually abusing in the Borough Park home he shares with his wife and family.

“There was a controlled phone call,” said Assistant District Attorney Kevin O’Donnell.

O’Donnell did not describe the call or elaborate on Daskal’s relationship with the girl, except to say “the parties are known to each other.”

The prosecutor also did not say how the shocking rape allegations surfaced. But a law enforcement source told The Post Friday that the girl had made the allegations to a therapist, who alerted police.

A grand jury has indicted Daskal on two felony charges of rape in the third degree for allegedly having sex with a victim under the age of 17.

Those charges alone carry a mandatory minimum sentence of one to four years in prison.

He is additionally facing four counts of criminal sexual act in the third degree, six counts of sexual misconduct, six counts of sexual abuse in the third degree and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child.

According to the indictment, the sex offenses occurred at Daskal’s 46th Street home between August and October 2017.

Daskal was handcuffed and remained silent, with head bowed, as his lawyer, Evan Lipton, entered his plea. Daskal looked disheveled as he stood before the judge after a night in custody. His black suit was rumpled and his yarmulke was slightly askew.

He was asked by Justice Deborah Dowling if he understood that he cannot obtain a new passport while he remains free on bail.

“Understand,” he answered in a clear, strong voice.

The prosecutor also said that the DA’s Office is ready for trial.

The judge set Daskal’s next court date for June 28.

“Will I get my phones back?” Daskal could be heard asking his lawyer as he left court.

“No,” Lipton answered. “Your phones have been seized.”

Six women and two men sat *together at the arraignment, leaving with Daskal.

Detectives from the NYPD Crime Scene Unit spent much of the afternoon searching Daskal’s home and electronics for incriminating communications, photos and videos.

“He is a good man; surely this is not true!” said a shocked neighbor, an older man.

Daskal for years donated thousands of dollars to local political campaigns, including those of ex-state Sen. Malcolm Smith, Sen. Simcha Felder and retiring Assemblyman Dov Hikind, who on Friday told The Post, “Everybody is in shock and disbelief.”

Sources also say Daskal’s deep connections with Shomrim and the local 66th Precinct made him a sometimes intimidating neighborhood figure.

Shomrim has been embroiled in an NYPD gun-permit-fixing scandal. Daskal was not charged, but another Shomrim leader, businessman Alex “Shaya” Lichtenstein, is serving a two-and-a-half-year sentence for bribing cops $1,000 for permits he would then resell for $18,000 each.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/05/11/nypd-bribery-case-was-delayed-due-to-evidence-blunder/

NYPD bribery case was delayed due to evidence blunder
By Kaja Whitehouse
May 11, 2018 | 9:35pm

Jeremy Reichberg
Erik Thomas


The feds’ case against a Mayor de Blasio donor accused of bribing cops was delayed for five months after prosecutors bungled the handover of evidence, it emerged in court Friday.

The bribery trial of de Blasio donor Jeremy Reichberg and ex-NYPD cop James Grant has been rescheduled for Oct. 4 — from May 22 — after it emerged that feds turned over a slew of never-before-seen evidence on the eve of trial, including 4,000 new wiretap recordings and hundreds of hours of new witness testimony.

Prosecutors admitted the blunder at a hearing Friday and said they’re trying to figure out what happened.

“We discovered it late in the game on Monday,” prosecutor Jessica Lonergan told the judge. “It is very unfortunate that this occurred.”

In all, the feds captured 11,000 secretly recorded phone calls tied to the case. They turned over 7,000 of the recordings initially — handing over another 4,000 earlier this week.

Prosecutors believe that only a “small percentage” of the 4,000 new recordings have pertinent information, according to Lonergan.

“A small percentage of 4,000 is still a large number,” Judge Gregory Woods said.

Lawyers for Reichberg and Grant called for the case to be dismissed, saying the men have been deprived of their right to a speedy trial.

“My client can’t afford this anymore and I know Mr. Grant can’t either,” Reichberg’s lawyer, Susan Necheles, told the judge. “It’s gross negligence.”

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/05/14/cop-who-dodged-corruption-charge-retiring-on-disability/

Cop who dodged corruption charge retiring on disability
By Tina Moore and Bruce Golding
May 14, 2018 | 5:25pm | Updated

Michael Andreano
Twitter


A high-ranking NYPD cop who was recently named an unindicted co-conspirator in a pending corruption case is about to retire with a tax-free pension, The Post has learned.

Lt. Michael Andreano was granted an accidental-disability retirement by the Police Pension Fund’s Board of Trustees last week despite having been hired following shoulder surgery, law-enforcement sources said Monday.

“It’s fully documented with the job that he came on with a pre-existing shoulder condition. I don’t know how he got it approved,” one source said.

The sweet deal includes a tax-free pension equal to three-quarters of Andreano’s final average salary. Over the past three fiscal years, he’s raked in as much as $157,498 annually, payroll records show.

Andreano was stripped of his badge and gun in 2016 in connection with corruption allegations tied to Brooklyn’s 66th Precinct in Borough Park, where he was in charge of Special Operations.

Last month, federal prosecutors listed him among 10 un-charged participants in an alleged bribery scheme involving ex-NYPD Deputy Inspector James Grant, a former 66th Precinct commander, and Jeremy Reichberg, a former fund-raiser for Mayor de Blasio.

The allegations against Andreano include providing a police escort for an associate of Reichberg’s in September 2014 and responding to Reichberg’s home with another cop “in order to reprimand a neighbor’s contractor.”

Since being assigned to the NYPD’s “rubber-gun squad,” Andreano has spent his work days at the NYPD’s Housing Bureau in The Bronx, where he monitors video feeds from surveillance cameras in housing projects, a source said.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/05/30/retired-cop-wants-probation-for-role-in-corruption-scandal/

Retired cop wants probation for role in corruption scandal
By Kaja Whitehouse
May 30, 2018 | 12:06am

A retired NYPD officer convicted of misusing city resources to benefit two Mayor de Blasio donors says he didn’t realize what he was doing was a crime and deserves probation when he is sentenced on June 11.

Disgraced ex-NYPD deputy chief Michael Harrington pleaded guilty in March to one count of misusing city resources to benefit of de Blasio donors Jona Rechnitz and Jeremy Reichberg, including securing a police boat for a private event that Reichberg was hosting.

Harrington, former right-hand man to the NYPD’s then-Chief of Department Philip Banks, faces as much as 10 years in prison when sentenced next month.

But his lawyer argued in a Manhattan federal court filing on Tuesday that while Harrington knew what he was doing was wrong, he somehow had no idea it was a crime until it was too late.

“While he realized it was wrong to cut corners and bypass Department protocol, what Harrington didn’t know at the time was that those derelictions were criminal,” his lawyer, Andrew Weinstein rth:, said in the sentencing submission.

Weinstein also claimed that his client has suffered enough — thanks to the publicity around the case, which has included allegations that Reichberg and Rechnitz tried bribing cops with private jet flights and prostitutes.

Plus, his “status as a former police executive, combined with the extensive publicity attending his case, would either expose him to abuse from fellow inmates or require preventive segregation, forcing him to serve his sentence under unusually harsh conditions,” his lawyer claimed.

Harrington was initially charged with accepting bribes — including thousands of dollars worth of hotel rooms for his family during a trip to Chicago — in exchange for doling out favors to Reichberg and Rechnitz.

He ended up pleading guilty to the one count of misusing resources as part of a plea deal reached in early March.

Harrington’s alleged co-conspirators Reichberg and ex-NYPD officer James Grant go to trial on Oct. 4.

Rechnitz has already pleaded guilty and is expected to testify at trial.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/06/13/retired-cop-sentenced-in-nypd-corruption-probe/

Retired cop sentenced in NYPD corruption probe
By Priscilla DeGregory and Kaja Whitehouse
June 13, 2018 | 2:37pm | Updated

Michael Harrington
Natan Dvir


A retired NYPD officer convicted of misusing city resources to benefit a Mayor Bill de Blasio donor was all smiles Wednesday after he was sentenced to two years’ probation and 180 hours of community service tied to a corruption probe that rocked the NYPD when it was announced two years ago.

Ex-NYPD Deputy Chief Michael Harrington hugged and shook hands with supporters after Manhattan federal Judge Gregory Wood gave him the slap-on-the-wrist sentence.

The former right-hand man of the NYPD’s then-Chief of Department Philip Banks initially was charged with accepting bribes from de Blasio donors (((Jeremy Reichberg and Jona Rechnitz))) in a case that sent shockwaves through the NYPD when arrests were made in 2016.

But Harrington ended up copping to one charge of misusing resources to benefit Reichberg, including securing a police boat for a private event Reichberg was hosting, as part of an agreement hashed out with the government.

He faced up to six months in prison on that charge.

Harrington’s lawyer argued that he should get time served, saying he’s been a “scapegoat” for the feds at a time when other high-ranking officials also received gifts from Reichberg and Rechnitz — a clear reference to Banks.

“The $64,000 question is: Where are all these other high-ranking officials?” lawyer Andrew Weinstein said. The government is “using their time today trying to use Mike Harrington as a scapegoat,” Weinstein said.

Rechnitz, a government cooperator, has testified in a related case that he showered gifts on Banks, including steak dinners, a trip to Israel and a backgammon set, as well as on other officers who were also not charged.

Banks, who is now retired, has denied that he did anything wrong.

Prosecutor Martin Bell scoffed at the notion that Harrington is a scapegoat, saying he “was among the most powerful” people who benefited from Rechnitz and Reichberg.”

Harrington did “clear things he should not have done … that’s why Mr. Harrington is here,” Bell said.

Harrington’s co-defendants, Reichberg and ex-NYPD officer James Grant, will go on trial for bribery in October.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/08/07/de-blasio-donor-claims-he-bribed-his-way-through-city-hall-nypd/

De Blasio donor claims he bribed his way through City Hall, NYPD
By Kaja Whitehouse
August 7, 2018 | 8:49pm | Updated

Bill de Blasio and Jona Rechnitz


Mayor Bill de Blasio donor Jona Rechnitz took the witness stand Tuesday to testify for the second time in 10 months to bribing his way through City Hall and the NYPD.

Rechnitz, 35, called the NYPD’s ex-chief of department Philip Banks one of the “two or three substantial ones” when asked about police brass he showered with gifts in exchange for favors.

The other two were former NYPD Deputy Michael Harrington, who has pleaded guilty, and James Grant, who is awaiting trial.

Banks has not been charged with any wrongdoing.

Rechnitz, a real-estate developer, also claimed he had been “bribing my way through City Hall,” but the jury was sent home before he could provide specifics. He continues on the stand Wednesday.

Rechnitz is testifying at the corruption retrial of ex-city jails union chief Norman Seabrook, who is accused of steering $20 million in union money to a troubled hedge fund in exchange for $60,000 in bribes. Seabrook’s 2017 trial ended in a hung jury.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/08/10/de-blasio-donor-wants-charges-dismissed-over-evidence-blunder/

De Blasio donor wants bribery charges dismissed over evidence blunder
By Kaja Whitehouse
August 10, 2018 | 9:28pm | Updated

A Mayor de Blasio donor and alleged cop briber is demanding that charges against him be dismissed over an evidence blunder that forced his corruption trial to be pushed back by five whole months.

Jeremy Reichberg, who’s accused of bribing cops Michael Harrington and James Grant, says the feds deprived him of his constitutional right to a speedy trial when they turned over a slew of new evidence on the eve of opening arguments, including 4,000 new wiretap recordings and hundreds of hours of new witness testimony — forcing the judge to postpone proceedings to Oct. 4.

“After living under the cloud of criminal charges for nearly two years, Mr. Reichberg looked forward to confronting the government’s accusations in May,” his lawyer, Susan Necheles, said in court documents. “It is solely because of the government’s failure to perform its duties with diligence that he has not yet had his day in court.”

Necheles asked the judge to sanction prosecutors for the delay.

The request comes the same week Reichberg’s alleged co-conspirator, Jona Rechnitz, took the stand in the retrial of ex-city jails union boss Norman Seabrook, saying that he and Reichberg bribed or attempted to bribe upwards of a dozen cops when Reichberg was a police liaison for the resident of Borough Park, Brooklyn.

 

[The Bobster]

https://nypost.com/2018/08/23/nypd-...ant-jurors-asked-about-bias-over-hooker-romp/

NYPD corruption defendants want jurors asked about bias over hooker romp
By Priscilla DeGregory
August 23, 2018 | 7:18pm

James Grant (left) and Jeremy Reichberg
Erik Thomas


Two men headed to trial in October for an NYPD bribery scandal want potential jurors to be asked if hearing evidence about cops having sex with prostitutes would make them unable to be fair jurors.

Lawyers for ex-NYPD Deputy Inspector James Grant and de Blasio donor Jeremy Reichberg ask in a proposed jury questionnaire: “You may hear evidence or testimony from one or more individuals in this case about police officers having sex with prostitutes. Do you have strong feelings about such evidence or testimony that would make it difficult for you to render a fair and impartial verdict?”

Prosecutors don’t want the question to be included. Manhattan judge Gregory Woods is expected to rule at a later date.

Grant and ex-NYPD Deputy Chief Michael Harrington — who previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to probation — are accused of acting like rent-a-cops for Reichberg and another de Blasio donor and government witness Jona Rechnitz.

As part of an alleged bribe, Reichberg and Rechnitz flew a group of officers on a private plane to Las Vegas to watch Super Bowl XLVII with prostitute-turned-aspiring rapper Gabi Grecko, who provided escort services to them aboard the plane, officials have said.

Grant had a romp with Grecko on that flight but claims it wasn’t a bribe because he paid for her services himself.

Defense attorneys also want jurors to be asked about their feelings towards Hasidic Jews. Rechnitz and Reichberg are both Jewish.

“Have you, a family member, or anyone close to you had any experiences, feelings or impressions about Hasidic Jews that were particularly positive or negative?” the defense’s proposed question states.

At a brief appearance in Manhattan federal court on Thursday it was revealed that Grant’s lawyer, John Meringolo, has a heart condition the treatment for which could delay trial again.

The lawyers will discuss how to proceed at the next calendar date on Sept. 4.