By Jeremy Walsh
One of the former NYPD officers accused in January of framing four Elmhurst men in a narcotics case has pleaded guilty in return for cooperating against the other defendants, court papers and sources close to the case said.
Former Police Officer Henry Tavarez, 27, pleaded guilty Friday to offering a false instrument for filing, a Class E felony, court records show. The maximum sentence would be four years in prison, the Queens district attorney’s office said. But Tavarez took a plea deal that would put him in jail for five days in return for providing information about the other defendants, a source said.
Tavarez’s lawyer, Lawrence Fredella, has said his client was a rookie on the narcotics squad following the lead of his superior officer.
Tavarez is next scheduled to appear Sept. 30. His partner and co-defendant, former Detective Stephen Anderson, is slated to appear in court July 17 on charges of drug sales, filing a false instrument, falsifying business records, misconduct, unlawful imprisonment, conspiracy, attempted perjury and tampering with a witness for allegedly trying to convince Tavarez to claim he forgot the details of the drug bust.
Anderson pleaded not guilty to the charges in January.
The catalyst for the case against the cops was two Elmhurst brothers, Maximo and Jose Colon, who were enjoying a drink at Delicias de Mi Tierra, an Elmhurst bar, on Jan. 5, 2008, when they were arrested and charged along with four other men with selling undercover officers cocaine.
The officers allegedly wrote in their report that while in the bar, two of the men sold them one bag of cocaine and the Colons and the other two men sold them two bags, the DA said.
But after being released on bail the day after the arrest, Jose Colon went to the bar and retrieved surveillance camera footage that showed the officers never spoke to the Colons.
Two of the other suspects later pleaded guilty to selling all three bags of cocaine to Anderson and Tavarez, the DA’s office said. Charges against the Colons were dropped.
The brothers allege the arrest caused the city to revoke their licenses to sell lottery tickets and cigarettes at their supermarket, causing it to go out of business.
Christina Hall, an attorney for the brothers, was not available for comment by press time Tuesday.
Reach reporter Jeremy Walsh by e-mail at jewalsh@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-229-0300, Ext. 154.
