WHITE PLAINS, NY (June 20, 2024) — Westchester County Department of Correction officers and civilian employees were arraigned on charges for accepting bribe payments and smuggling contraband to incarcerated individuals at the Westchester County Jail in Valhalla. A civilian employee with the Mount Vernon Police Department was also arraigned earlier this month on charges for smuggling contraband into the Mount Vernon Police Department Cell Block.
What they are saying:
Westchester County District Attorney Miriam E. Rocah: “These defendants put their own interests above the safety of incarcerated individuals, employees, civilians, and other correction officers. Our jails become less safe when correction officers and others in position of public trust accept bribes to smuggle in contraband. We commend the Westchester County Department of Correction for working with my Office to ensure these individuals face serious consequences.”
Westchester County Department of Correction Commissioner Joseph K. Spano: “The involved correction officers have disgraced the shield that they once wore and violated the trust we put in them to uphold the law and work with integrity. I thank DA Rocah and her team for the great work they did investigating these cases and our Major Case Squad for providing valuable assistance.”
Five defendants were arrested by the DA’s Office Criminal Investigators Squad on June 11 and arraigned before Judge Mark Rubeo on June 20 in Mount Pleasant Justice Court on the following charges:
- Peter Cumberbatch, 39, of New Rochelle, a Westchester County correction officer assigned to the Westchester County Jail, was charged with Bribe Receiving in the Third Degree, a felony, and Promoting Prison Contraband in the Second Degree, a misdemeanor, for allegedly accepting an $800 payment from an associate of an incarcerated individual in exchange for smuggling contraband into the jail in March 2023. Cumberbatch was suspended following his arrest and is being scheduled for an employment termination hearing.
- Shakia Smythe, 32, of Peekskill, a Westchester County correction officer assigned to the Westchester County Jail, was charged with two counts of Bribe Receiving in the Third Degree and Promoting Prison Contraband in the Second Degree for allegedly accepting multiple payments, totaling more than $500, from an associate of an incarcerated individual in exchange for smuggling contraband into the jail between June and August 2022. Smythe was suspended following her arrest and is being scheduled for an employment termination hearing.
- Wilfredo Gonzague, 36, of Briarcliff Manor, a former Westchester County correction officer who was assigned to the Westchester County Jail, was charged with three counts of Bribe Receiving in the Third Degree and two counts of Promoting Prison Contraband in the Second Degree for allegedly accepting payments, totaling more than $2,000, from an associate of an incarcerated individual in exchange for smuggling contraband into the jail between September 2022 and February 2023. Gonzague was terminated from the WCDOC on Feb. 7, 2023.
- Sadari Holt, 30, of the Bronx, a former employee of a County-contracted vendor that provides commissary services to the Westchester County Jail, was charged with five counts of Bribe Receiving in the Third Degree and five counts of Promoting Prison Contraband in the Second Degree for allegedly accepting multiple payments, totaling more than $1,500, from associates of two incarcerated individuals between December 2021 and April 2022. Holt’s security clearance was revoked by the WCDOC on Apr. 4, 2022.
- Shardae Moore, 35, of Yonkers, a former employee of a County-contracted vendor that provides commissary services to the Westchester County Jail, was charged with Bribe Receiving in the Third Degree for accepting a $500 payment from an associate of an incarcerated individual in December 2023. Moore’s security clearance was revoked by the WCDOC on Dec. 12, 2023.
Prior to these arrests, on May 20, the DA’s Office Criminal Investigators Squad arrested Sean Rogers, 40, of Mount Vernon, a civilian jailor with the Mount Vernon Police Department, for allegedly delivering three cylindrical objects wrapped in electrical tape containing a leafy substance to an incarcerated individual awaiting a court appearance at the MVPD Cell Block on March 11.
Rogers was arraigned on the charge of Promoting Prison Contraband in the Second Degree before Judge Peter St. George Davis on June 3 in Mount Vernon City Court. His next court date is July 9.
The investigations into the incidents at the Westchester County Jail were conducted by the DA’s Office Public Integrity and Law Enforcement Integrity Bureau and the WCDOC Major Case Squad. The investigation into the incident at the MVPD Cell Block was conducted by the DA’s Office Public Integrity and Law Enforcement Integrity Bureau, the WCDOC Major Case Squad and the Mount Vernon Police Department.
The cases are being prosecuted by the Public Integrity and Law Enforcement Integrity Bureau of the Trials and Investigations Division.
