Complaint #201908498,
September 13, 2019

Summary

At approximately 10:55 p.m. on September 13, 2019, Det. Richard Degaetano, Det. Michael Wolfe, and Lt. Terrence McCall of Zone 2 of the Vice Enforcement Division oversaw an undercover operation at an unlicensed bottle club located at [redacted] in Staten Island. After undercover officers entered the club and purchased alcohol, Det. Degaetano, Det. Wolfe, and Lt. McCall entered the club and arrested four employees: [redacted] (the club owner), [redacted] (a club manager), [redacted] (a bartender) and [redacted] (another bartender) (Allegations A, B, and C: Abuse of Authority: Entry of premises: [redacted]). The officers then opened a locked storage room to retrieve a digital video recorder (DVR) that contained video of the undercover officers (Allegation D, E, and F: Abuse of Authority: Search of premises: [redacted]). [redacted], a co-owner of the club, observed a portion of the incident remotely over the club's surveillance system.
This incident was the first in a series of three incidents involving Det. Degaetano taking enforcement action at [redacted]'s unlicensed club. CCRB case #[redacted] involves a similar incident, approximately two months after this incident, in which Det. Degaetano arrested [redacted] and then obtained a search warrant for his club. CCRB case #[redacted] involves the third incident in the series, approximately three months after this incident, in which Det. Degaetano returned to the club as part of a multi-agency operation. Read report for details.