The taxpayer-funded Bronx health clinic robbed of hundreds of thousands of dollars by ex-State Senator Pedro Espada Jr. is hanging by a thread. Soundview has provided low-cost health care to thousands of South Bronx residents for years, but since Espada and his son Pedro G. have been on trial, it's drastically cut services and even stopped paying the malpractice insurance for its physicians. Fortunately Soundview still has enough cash to pay the Espadas' legal fees! But now the state Department of Health has moved in to shut it down, and it may cease operating completely. more ›

As we noted yesterday, the network of Bronx health clinics pillaged by disgraced ex-State Senator Pedro Espada, Jr. are struggling to stay afloat. Since Espada was indicted and put on trial for embezzlement, the non-profit has had to turn away more and more patients—the Times reports today that three-quarters of Soundview's patients are being denied health care. The government has been withholding Medicaid funding to Soundview, and to make matters worse, the clinic is reportedly picking up the tab for Espada's legal fees. more ›

We were worried there for a minute that convicted thief Pedro Espada, Jr. would quickly fade from the public consciousness now that his embezzlement trial is over, taking his crucifix and conspiracy theories with him. But have no fear—the disgraced ex-State Senator from Bronxchester will be haunting the Brooklyn federal courthouse steps for months to come, because sources tell the Wall Street Journal the feds are expected to prosecute Espada all over again on the four federal counts on which a jury couldn't agree. more ›

DEA agents and Internal Affairs investigators swooped in and arrested an NYPD officer on his way to work this morning and charged him with improperly using law enforcement databases to do favors for a notorious heroin dealer. According to wiretap evidence collected by the feds, Officer Devon Daniels, 30, was at the beck and call of heroin dealer Guy Curtis, allegedly scoring him an NYPD parking placard and using a national law enforcement database to run searches for Curtis. more ›

The most obstinate holdout juror who, despite mountains of evidence, found Pedro Espada, Jr. not guilty of embezzlement just so happens to work for JP Morgan Chase, which, you may recall, has been in the news recently for its own shady financial activity. Fifteen minutes into deliberations, Chase employee Fabiola St. Phar reportedly jumped up from her seat and declared, "He’s innocent! He’s innocent! He’s innocent and I’m not going to change my mind," another juror tells the Daily News. See, who needs prayers, protective red clothing and crucifixes when you've got the hazy moral twilight culture of the banking industry to protect you? more ›

[UPDATE BELOW] Bronx Democrat Pedro Espada, Jr. has been found guilty on at least four counts of theft, reports Capital Tonight. Toward the end of last week, the jury asked the judge if they could submit a partial verdict in the embezzlement trial of Espada and his son Pedro, who are accused of siphoning hundreds of thousands of dollars out of Espada Jr.'s non-profit health clinic to pay for their lavish lifestyle. Jurors have gone back to deliberating on the other charges of embezzlement and three counts of conspiracy. . more ›

The jury is still agonizing over the fate of disgraced ex-state Senator Pedro Espada, Jr. and his son Pedro G. They're accused of embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from a nonprofit health network in the Bronx that Espada founded and funneled taxpayer money into before he lost his Senate seat amid a widening corruption scandal. The jury has sent notes to the judge insisting they're deadlocked, informing him that jurors are screaming and cursing at each other. But Espada says there's a simple explanation for the jury's consternation: black magic. more ›

Disgraced former State Senator and esteemed pizzaiolo Hiram Monserrate pleaded guilty to corruption charges yesterday after being indicted for misusing taxpayer money during his past stint as a councilmember. Monserrate's last publicized fling with the criminal justice system was in 2010, when he was convicted of misdemeanor assault after slashing then-girlfriend Karla Giraldo in the face. This time around, Monserrate's accused of siphoning over $100,000 in City Council "slush" funds in 2006, which he allegedly used to finance a campaign for higher office. more ›

The specter of a mistrial looms in the juicy embezzlement trial of disgraced ex-State Senator Pedro Espada, Jr., who's accused of funneling taxpayer dollars into a non-profit health clinic he operates, and then using clinic funds to finance a lavish lifestyle in Westchester. During three days of deliberations, the juries sent multiple notes to the judge reporting extreme consternation among the jurors, and at one point judge Frederic Block told the courtroom, "There seems to be some turbulence or screaming and stuff like that in the jury room." Hey wait a minute, Pedro's not supposed to be in there! more ›

According to the NY Times' Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter David Barstow, Wal-Mart paid millions of dollars in bribes to Mexican authorities to expedite the company's rapid growth in the country, then conducted an internal investigation that served as a cover-up. Wal-Mart's policy on ethics states, "Never cover up or ignore an ethics problem," but presumably there's a footnote that allows for exceptions "when the company really needs to bring cheese sausages and trampolines to the people of Mexico." And there's reason to believe the company's culture of corruption would be right at home here in New York. more ›

We've known that former Bronx State Senator Pedro Espada loves to (allegedly) eat $100,000 in meals by using public money from his publicly-funded health clinic, Soundview Health Clinic. Last month, federal prosecutors said that Espada and his family spent about $60,000 on sushi and lobster and finally the NY Post has broken out Pedro's Picks For Publicly-Funded Family Dinners. more ›

The disclosures in the embezzlement trial of disgraced State Senator Pedro Espada, Jr. just keeps getting more Pedriculous. In yesterday's testimony, it emerged that the the Bronxchester Senator submitted receipts to the nonprofit Soundview Health Clinic so that he could be reimbursed $697 for a new picket fence outside his Westchester dream home. To be fair, it is a pretty sweet fence—the Daily News has a photo of it. But here are a few other noteworthy items Espada submitted receipts for: more ›

Albany has passed a budget on time for the second year in a row! Nothing bolsters the public's confidence in politicians like when they go above and beyond to, um, do they job they were supposed to do anyway. Governor Cuomo and the leaders of the Senate and the Assembly were all smiles at yesterday's press conference, but maybe these photos were taken before the pols saw that New York received a D grade on its corruption risk report card? more ›

Believe it or not, we now live in an age when New Jersey politics is less corrupt than New York politics. A new report by the Center for Public Integrity—created with Global Integrity and Public Radio International—found that NJ is now the closest thing America has to a shining beacon on accountability and corruption. As for us? It seems our public offices are packed to the brim with liars, cheaters, users and abusers. And we can't just blame Pedro Espada Jr. for that. more ›

The Soundview Health Clinic run by former State Senator Pedro Espada, Jr. was running low on medical supplies while the disgraced Bronxchester politician spent over $500,000 of Soundview money to pay for his lavish lifestyle, a former clinic employee testified yesterday. "We were constantly running low on medical supplies,” Maria Dolores Cruz, one of three original employees of the Soundview Health Care Network, testified yesterday at Espada's embezzlement trial. "The patients would come in to get their dentures and their dentures would not be there.” Meanwhile, Espada was allegedly raiding the non-profit's coffers to cover this laundry-list of luxuries: more ›

The corruption trial of disgraced former State Senator Pedro Espada, Jr. and his son, "Pedro G.," finally kicked off yesterday in Federal District Court in Brooklyn. In her opening remarks, prosecutor Carolyn Pokorny unloaded on the Bronxchester pol, telling the jury Espada stole "more than half a million dollars from a public charity" and used the money to fund a lavish lifestyle which included extravagant meals, spa trips, luxury cars, vacations—including "sixty thousand dollars on sushi and lobster." Espada "even went out and tried to buy a Bentley," Pokorny alleged. more ›

An NYPD officer faces up to seven years in prison on a felony perjury rap, as well as three counts of Official Misconduct, for lying under oath, conducting unlawful searches and seizures in Northern Manhattan, and directing subordinates to falsify paperwork in order to make the arrests appears to be legitimate, the Manhattan DA's office announced yesterday. Michael Carsey, now a 31-year old ex-cop, pleaded guilty to the charges yesterday as part of a plea deal. He's the second officer to be convicted as part of this investigation; Carsey's superior, William Eiseman, 39, is currently serving three months in jail (on weeknds!) for his shenanigans, which forced the DA to repeatedly drop the charges because of shady police work. more ›

Last month it was revealed that the charity of a mystical rabbi to the stars spent $77,000 on a three-week rental in the Hamptons. Now, the Times reports that the followers of Rabbi Yoshiyahu Yosef Pinto were allegedly strong-armed into illegally donating over $500,000 to Staten Island Congressman Michael Grimm's campaign fund. Ah, so that's how mysticism works. more ›

Hell of a day for former State Senator Carl Kruger yesterday: Appearing in court to plead guilty to federal corruption charges, the longtime Brooklyn politician repeatedly sobbed as he admitted his guilt. With his gynecologist companion at his side, Kruger, 62, broke down and cried, telling Judge Jed S. Rakoff, "I apologize if I’m a little emotional over this." Asked if he was mentally fit to plea, Kruger said, "Under the circumstances, yes, Your Honor." NY Times columnist Michael Powell filed a vivid account of the pitiful scene, which seems worthy of a Ralph Steadman portrait: more ›

State Senator Carl Kruger's 16 year career as a legislator will likely come to an ignominious end today, when the lawmaker is expected to plead guilty to charges of fraud and taking bribes. Kruger, a Democrat represented the Brooklyn neighborhoods of Brighton Beach, Sheepshead Bay, Gravesend, Bergen Beach, Mill Basin, and Midwood, could face up to 20 years in prison on fraud charges and a maximum sentence of five years for bribery conspiracy, the Times reports. And if Kruger pleads guilty to a felony, he automatically loses his job. more ›

City Councilman Larry Seabrook was thrilled yesterday after a jury remained deadlocked on fraud charges against him— those charges included accusations that he got kickbacks from a contractor he recommended to work on the new Yankee Stadium, funneled hundreds of thousands to his mistress and her relatives, and altered a receipt for a $7 bagel to $177. Seabrook, a Democrat who represents the Bronx, said, “I continue to have faith and certainly have faith in God and faith in the jury system and hoping that the jury would come to the conclusion and that’s what we’ll live with, what was said. And we’ll continue to keep the faith." more ›

One employee at the state's Department of Transportation office in Buffalo took an unusual leave of absence: He went back to his native country of Somalia to be its prime minister. Mohamed Adullahi Mohamed spoke with the NY Times about being back in his war-torn homeland, "Every morning when I was brushing my teeth I heard bullets hitting the metal over my window. It was like, pop pop pop pop. The first day I was shocked. But after that I knew the bullets would not get through, so I continued brushing." more ›

Everybody gets a bribe! You get a bribe! And you get a bribe! And you get a bribe! That, at least, seems to be the attitude over at the offices of Assemblyman William Boyland Jr., who was arrested earlier this week on a second set of corruption charges after being acquitted of the first earlier this year. See, it wasn't just Boyland taking money. According to the FBI his chief of staff, Ry-Ann Hermon, was in on the take too. And it made her hot. more ›

Assemblyman William F. Boyland Jr. was indicted for a second time yesterday, accused by federal prosecutors of soliciting $250,000 in bribes in exchange for political favors. Earlier this month Boyland Jr. was acquitted on other corruption charges, and he used court-appointed attorneys in his defense, which cost taxpayers $125 an hour. They got him off that time, and so why mess with perfection? Boyland Jr. will once again be passing along the costs of his alleged corruption to his constituents. Cut him some slack, he's broke! more ›

NY Assemblyman William Boyland Jr. was his acquittal on corruption charges earlier this month, but the party is about to end, because the feds just arrested him this morning on new corruption charges. U.S. Attorney Loretta Lynch says Boyland solicited more than $250,000 in bribes and took thousands for performing official acts for bribe players. Boyland, who represents Brooklyn's 55th District, allegedly told one undercover agent, "I got a middle guy by the way ... I gotta stay clean ... I got a bag man..." more ›

State Assemblyman William Boyland was grinning and pumping his arms in the air after being acquitted of corruption charges in federal court yesterday. Boyland, who represent Brooklyn, had been indicted, along with powerful State Senator Carl Kruger, on charges of bribery and accepting money from hospital executives in exchange for state contracts. But a jury found Boyland not guilty and a juror told the Daily News that the feds “didn’t give us enough evidence to convict him and send him to jail." more ›

Bronx City Councilman Larry Seabrook was in federal court yesterday, as his corruption trial began. The first witness, who had donated tens of thousands to the Democrat, insisted the money wasn't in exchange for getting the job to make boilers for the new Yankee Stadium, "He never said give me money for the Yankee Stadium. It was never a, what do you call it? Quid pro quo." more ›

The NYPD Internal Affairs department, which is entrusted with investigating police corruption, has failed to adequately police the police, according to several law enforcement experts, prosecutors, and current and former members of Internal Affairs. A damning article in today's Times begins by pointing out that all the recent corruption allegations and indictments in the NYPD have one thing in common: none of the investigations began with Internal Affairs. more ›