Complaint #201807404,
August 17, 2018

Officer: Conejo, Francis
Allegation: Abuse of Authority: Search of Premises
CCRB Conclusion: Exonerated
Officer: Conejo, Francis
Complainant: Hispanic Male, 21
Allegation: Abuse of Authority: Strip-searched
CCRB Conclusion: Unsubstantiated
Officer: Candelaria, Luis
Complainant: Hispanic Male, 21
Allegation: Force: Chokehold
CCRB Conclusion: Unsubstantiated
Officer: Espinal, Sandy
Complainant: Hispanic Male, 21
Allegation: Force: Hit against inanimate object
CCRB Conclusion: Exonerated
Officer: Bohr, Franklin
Complainant: Hispanic Male, 21
Allegation: Abuse of Authority: Threat of arrest
CCRB Conclusion: Unsubstantiated
Officer: Unknown Officer
Complainant: Hispanic Male, 21-24
Allegation: Discourtesy: Word
CCRB Conclusion: Officer(s) Unidentified
Officer: Conejo, Francis
Allegation: Abuse of Authority: Entry of Premises
CCRB Conclusion: Exonerated
Officer: Kourounis, Nicholas
Complainant: Hispanic Male, 21
Allegation: Abuse of Authority: Strip-searched
CCRB Conclusion: Unsubstantiated
Officer: Espinal, Sandy
Complainant: Hispanic Male, 21
Allegation: Abuse of Authority: Frisk
CCRB Conclusion: Unsubstantiated
Officer: Espinal, Sandy
Complainant: Hispanic Male, 21
Allegation: Abuse of Authority: Search (of person)
CCRB Conclusion: Unsubstantiated
Officer Complainant Allegation CCRB Conclusion
Conejo, Francis Abuse of Authority: Search of Premises Exonerated
Conejo, Francis Hispanic Male, 21 Abuse of Authority: Strip-searched Unsubstantiated
Candelaria, Luis Hispanic Male, 21 Force: Chokehold Unsubstantiated
Espinal, Sandy Hispanic Male, 21 Force: Hit against inanimate object Exonerated
Bohr, Franklin Hispanic Male, 21 Abuse of Authority: Threat of arrest Unsubstantiated
Unknown Officer Hispanic Male, 21-24 Discourtesy: Word Officer(s) Unidentified
Conejo, Francis Abuse of Authority: Entry of Premises Exonerated
Kourounis, Nicholas Hispanic Male, 21 Abuse of Authority: Strip-searched Unsubstantiated
Espinal, Sandy Hispanic Male, 21 Abuse of Authority: Frisk Unsubstantiated
Espinal, Sandy Hispanic Male, 21 Abuse of Authority: Search (of person) Unsubstantiated

Conclusion Meanings:

'Exonerated': or 'Within NYPD Guidelines' - The conduct occurred but did not violate the NYPD's own rules, which often give officers significant discretion.
'Officer(s) Unidentified': Unable to identify the officers who committed the alleged misconduct
'Unsubstantiated': or 'Unable to Determine' - The alleged conduct was investigated but could not determine both that the conduct occurred and that it broke the rules.

Further details on conclusions.


Summary

On August 17, 2018, at approximately 6:20 p.m., [redacted] entered the lobby of his apartment building at [redacted] in the Bronx. There, he encountered Police Officer Luis Candelaria, Police Officer Nicholas Kourounis, Police Officer Francis Conejo, and Sergeant Sandy Espinal, all of the 46th Precinct, who were at the location to conduct reconnaissance of the building before executing a search warrant for [redacted]s apartment at a not yet determined later time.
PO Candelaria allegedly placed [redacted] in a chokehold (Allegation A: Force; [redacted] was allegedly frisked (Allegation B: Abuse of Authority; [redacted] and searched (Allegation C: Abuse of Authority; [redacted] an unknown officer allegedly told [redacted] to "shut the fuck up," (Allegation D: Discourtesy; [redacted] Sgt. Espinal pushed [redacted] against a wall (Allegation E: Force; [redacted] and PO Kourounis allegedly searched [redacted] inside of his underwear (Allegation F: Abuse of Authority; [redacted]
PO Conejo and a team of 46th Precinct officers decided to execute the search warrant for [redacted]s apartment (Allegations G and H: Abuse of Authority; [redacted] was brought into his apartment, where he encountered Sergeant Franklin Bohr of the Criminal Intelligence Section, and Captain Emilio Melendez of the 46th Precinct. Sgt. Bohr allegedly told [redacted] that if he did not tell him where contraband was located inside of the apartment, Sgt. Bohr would arrest [redacted] (Allegation I: Abuse of Authority; [redacted] PO Conejo also allegedly searched [redacted] inside of his underwear (Allegation J: Abuse of Authority; [redacted]
[redacted] was arrested for criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree. According to the Office of Court Administration ("OCA"), [redacted]s charges were dismissed (BR 01).
Surveillance footage from the lobby of [redacted] was obtained, however due to a recording malfunction, portions of the incident are not captured. Cell phone footage recorded by a witness, [redacted] was obtained from... Read report for details.


Details

Incident: August 17, 2018
Received: September 6, 2018
Closed: September 17, 2019

Reason for contact: PD suspected C/V of violation/crime - bldg
Location: Other
In NYPD 46th Precinct Bronx
Outcome: Arrest - other violation/crime

Witness Officers: Joshua Healy, Martin Kuhl, Diego Marin, Emilio Melendez
Video evidence collected