By Rich Bockmann
NYPD veteran Jose Tejada was met by New York’s Finest when he arrived at John F. Kennedy International Airport last week, but instead of a warm welcome he got a pair of cuffs slapped on his wrists.
Federal prosecutors said Tejada, who has spent 17 years on the force, used his position in the NYPD to allegedly help a gang of stick-up artists pull off more than 100 armed robberies of drug dealers in an operation that netted 250 kilograms of coke and $1 million in ill-gotten cash.
Dressed in NYPD uniforms, Tejada and his crew allegedly used fake warrants and handcuffs to stage phony arrests, bilking drug dealers out of their supplies, according to Loretta Lynch, U.S. attorney for New York’s Eastern District.
Tejada is accused of personally participating in three robberies and attempted robberies in 2006 and 2007 when he was “on active duty and in uniform,” according to the complaint.
During one of the hold-ups, Tejada and his crew mistook a Bronx home for a drug crew’s hangout, prosecutors said. Tejada and two others dressed in uniforms allegedly rifled through the house while the officer brandished his department-issued firearm at the family, according to the complaint.
During another robbery in Manhattan, Tejada and his crew — which included another actual cop — allegedly pulled a car over and handcuffed the driver before making off with 5 kilograms of coke.
Tejada is also accused of illegally accessing a law-enforcement database to make sure his co-conspirators did not have outstanding warrants against them.
Federal prosecutors said 21 members of the crew, which has operated since 2001, have already been convicted. Tejada’s name was added onto a superseding indictment unsealed in Brooklyn federal court April 3.
Tejada is charged with conspiring to commit robbery and distribute drugs and using a firearm in a robbery, the U.S. attorney said. He could get life in prison if convicted on the narcotics and weapons charges.
Tejada has pleaded not guilty, according to the New York Post.
Reach reporter Rich Bockmann by e-mail at rbockmann@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4574.
