In a case that set of alarm bells all over Southern Westchester, Paula Izurieta, 30, of 17 Smart Street in Yonkers was convicted yesterday in New York State Supreme Court in New City, NY on all charges stemming from a burglary at the home of Richard Serpico, a Congers resident, 33 years old at the time of his death, who was killed in a motorcycle crash the weekend before the burglary occurred. Izurieta was convicted of two counts of Burglary-2nd Degree, both felonies.
Izurieta was arrested along with Ivan Murat on July 18, 2010 at the dead man’s home. According to police they were taking everything out of the victims house including towels and even his bathing suits.
Izurieta was the only witness to the drowning death of Mount Vernon fireman James Drago. Izurieta was not initially identified by police as a witness in the Drago case. Members of the Mount Vernon Fire Department recognized Izurieta from her mugshot in the Journal News after she was arrested in connection with the Rockland County burglary and contacted Talk of the Sound contributor Eye on New Roc.
On June 26, 2010 Drago and Izurieta took his boat out from its slip at the New Rochelle Marina. Some time after, Izurieta called 911 to report Drago missing in Long island Sound, setting of a search and rescue effort by local police and the Coast Guard. A week later, on July 4th, Drago’s body was found floating in the water within a mile of where he was first reported missing, near the Larchmont Shore Club. Izurieta told Larchmont Police that Drago left the boat to go swimming, went under the water and never resurfaced.
No charges were ever filed in the case. The Westchester County Medical Examiner report, concluded that the body of James Drago, a Mount Vernon firefighter who took his boat out from the New Rochelle marina on June 26th, contained high levels of alcohol and PCP.
Izurieta, identified as a heroin addict in news reports at the time, was well-known by Yonkers police who, according to Channel 12 News, made numerous visits to her home at 17 Smart Street.
Izurieta is currently in custody in the Rockland County Jail. She will be sentenced on June 6th.
SIDEBAR:
Izurieta’s lawyer Martin E. Gotkin, was convicted of fraud and grand larceny and disbarred.
New York Times: Working the 24 Hours of a Day, and Even Longer
Mr. Gotkin pleaded guilty in 1981 to a charge of grand larceny and was fined $20,000 for submitting inflated legal bills to the Assigned Counsel Plan. On hundreds of days over three years, he had billed for more court hours than the courts were even open, according to court documents. On 27 occasions, he billed for more than 24 hours in a single day. On one day in 1978, he claimed he worked 28 hours in court and 22 out of court.
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