When law enforcement officials feel they have the authority to savagely assault a man based solely on the suspicion that he might be trespassing, then it's probably time to rein them in.

That's precisely the level of judgment 20-year-old Anthony Jones alleges Roosevelt Island Public Safety Department officers used when they brutally assaulted him without provocation--landing him handcuffed to a hospital bed for five days with fractured ribs, broken teeth and punctured lungs.

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A former NYPD detective -- whose BAC was more than three times the legal limit when he plowed into a Bronx grandmother with a cop car -- was convicted of manslaughter yesterday.

Former Detective Kevin Spellman, however, beat the rap on the most serious charges against him (aggravated vehicular homicide and first-degree vehicular manslaughter) in the death of 66-year-old Drane Nikac, who was struck by the tipsy former detective on October 30, 2009, as she was walking near the intersection of West 232nd St. and Kingsbridge Avenue in the Bronx.

Following the accident, Spellman refused a breathalyzer test, and his BAC wasn't tested until five hours after he slammed into the Bronx grandmother while driving erratically in his NYPD-owned Chevy Impala.

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A former NYPD officer who pleaded guilty last month to charges that he stole several NYPD-issued firearms from fellow officers and sold them to a Queens drug kingpin was in court today, where he was sentenced to 15-and-a-half years in prison.

Additionally, former Officer Nicholas Mina -- who claims he sold the stolen guns to fuel his addiction to prescription pills -- was sentenced to five years of post-release supervision.

In his plea, Mina -- a three-year NYPD veteran -- admitted to stealing five guns in total, four NYPD-issued Glocks, one of which was his own, and a Smith and Wesson handgun. He copped to selling the guns to reputed drug kingpin Ivan Chavez, the leader of a Woodhaven drug distribution ring.

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Hurricane Sandy and the presidential election have dominated the headlines here in the Big Apple for the last two weeks. But let's not forget what was going on in New York before that bitch Sandy dropped by: two NYPD officers are under investigation for what could potentially be pretty appalling crimes.

In one case, a detective fatally shot an unarmed National Guardsman on a Queens highway for no apparent reason. In the other, two NYPD officers in Brooklyn beat the crap out of a man in a Crown Heights synagogue -- also for no apparent reason.

Both officers are under investigation by both the NYPD's internal affairs division and prosecutors in their respective counties. In neither case have district attorneys determined whether they will file criminal charges against the officers, prosecutors told the Voice this morning.


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NYPD Officer Gilberto Valle III

The NYPD officer accused of plotting to cook up a batch of lady stew was merely involved in "idle talk" online -- it was just a "fantasy," his attorney, Julia Gatto, said yesterday.

"Nobody has been injured. Nobody has been taken," Gatto said during Cannibal Cop Gilberto Valle III's arraignment. "It is, at best, someone who is living a fantasy on the Internet, a deviant fantasy. But there is no actual crossing the line from fantasy to reality."

The "fantasy," however, made the jump to reality when Valle III actually met with several of the women he'd had "on file" as potential victims/meals.

In at least one case, Valle had lunch with one of the women. Little did she know that she was on Valle's alleged menu.

New details have emerged about the bizarre case of rape, murder, and cannibalism planned by the NYPD officer and at least two other men.

Further Reading:

Cannibal Cop: "Professional Kidnappers" Don't Rape On The Job

NYPD Officer Busted In Plot To Kidnap/Cook (Yes, Cook) Women

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Gilberto Valle III: Protect and serve -- with a side of fries and a nice Chianti.

As if plotting to cook and eat several women wasn't creepy enough, NYPD Officer Gilberto Valle III told an alleged co-conspirator that he was training to be "a professional kidnapper," which is the reason he offered for not wanting to rape the woman the co-conspirator apparently had hired him to kidnap.

"Professional kidnappers," apparently, need to remain professional -- there is no place for rape in a "professional" kidnapping.

After a complete review of the criminal complaint against Valle, it's safe to say that this is one of the most bizarre/terrifying crime stories we can recall.

What makes it so creepy -- besides the cannibalism, of course -- is the fact that Valle had not one, but two co-conspirators who apparently had the same demented thoughts as the officer.

One of Valle's co-conspirators -- while discussing the cooking process for one of the alleged victims -- told the officer that "you do know that if we don't waste any of her, there is nearly 75 pounds of food there."

And that was only after the co-conspirator asked Valle "What is your favorite cut of meat?"

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Alleged cannibal cop Gilberto Valle III

Who's hungry?

An NYPD officer was arrested last night after authorities say he hatched a bizarre plot to kidnap and cook his girlfriend and up to 100 other women.

"[My oven] is big enough to fit one of these girls if I folded their legs&The abduction will have to be flawless&I know all of them&[Victim 1], I can just show up at her home unannounced, it will not alert her, and I can knock her out, wait until dark and kidnap her right out of her home," Officer Gilberto Valle III said in an online conversation with a co-conspirator, according to a federal criminal complaint first obtained by WABC (read the full complaint here).

Valle went on to the tell the co-conspirator that "I was thinking of tying her body onto some kind of apparatus&cook her over a low heat, keep her alive as long as possible."

And then there's this: "I love that she is asleep right now not having the slightest clue of what we have planned. Her days are numbered. I'm glad you're on board. She does look tasty doesn't she?"

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The Brooklyn District Attorney's Office announced yesterday that it has dropped charges of assaulting a police officer -- and other less-serious offenses -- against a Crown Heights man who earlier this month got the crap kicked out of him by a police officer for no apparent reason.

The D.A.'s Office tells the Voice that it's yet to make a decision about whether to charge the officer.


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The Brooklyn District Attorney's Office just announced that it has dropped all charges against a Crown Heights man who was roughed up by an NYPD officer earlier this month for no apparent reason.

"After review of all available evidence I have decided to dismiss the charges against Ehud Halevy," Brooklyn D.A. Charles Hynes says in a statement issued moments ago.


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A former NYPD officer admitted in court today that he stole several NYPD-issued firearms from fellow officers and sold them to a Queens drug kingpin over a six-month period earlier this year.

The plea deal accepted by former officer Nicholas Mina, 32, includes a 15-year-prison sentence when he's sentenced on November 7.

In his plea, Mina -- a three-year NYPD veteran -- admitted to stealing five guns in total, four NYPD-issued Glocks, one of which was his own, and a Smith and Wesson handgun. He copped to selling the guns to reputed drug kingpin Ivan Chavez, the leader of a Woodhaven drug distribution ring.

Mina says he sold the guns to fuel his addiction to prescription pain killers.

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