Bronx NYPD captain accused of helping an off-duty detective avoid DWI charges
By Rocco Parascandola
New York Daily News
February 23, 2018
NEW YORK -- A Bronx NYPD captain accused of helping an off-duty detective avoid DWI charges turned himself in Wednesday, authorities said.
Capt. Naoki Yaguchi, a 13-year veteran, was indicted by a grand jury last week for official misconduct and obstructing governmental administration.
He was arraigned Wednesday in Bronx Criminal Court and released without bail. The Bronx District Attorney’s office said Yaguchi intervened when off-duty NYPD Detective Efrain Medina was involved in a two-car crash on Forhdam Road April 22.
Medina said he had a glass of wine at least two hours earlier, according to sources.
Authorities try to adhere to the two-hour rule, testing a suspect’s blood alcohol level no more than 120 minutes after the incident. Tests done after that threshold are considered less reliable.
Yaguchi, who was working that night as a duty captain, allegedly delayed Medina’s trip from the 46th Precinct stationhouse to the 45th Precinct stationhouse, where DWI suspects in the Bronx are given a Breathalyzer test. The delay prevented officers from taking a test that could provide an accurate reading of how much alcohol was in Medina's system, the DA said.
Roy Richter, head of the Captains Endowment Association, said the indictment is "completely without merit and is a perversion of the prosecutorial authority given to the Bronx District Attorney."
Yaguchi, he said, didn't start his shift until almost 90 minutes after the accident and that once the captain learned of the incident he ordered Medina taken to the precinct — then went there himself to oversee the investigation.
Yaguchi, 36, has been suspended without pay. He is the NYPD's first Japanese-American captain and was the executive officer — serving as second in command — at the 40th Precinct at the time of the accident.
Medina was charged with operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol and pleaded to a violation.
2 comments:
Gonna have a hard time proving that case. Probably should have been handled internally. The Captain has a huge amount of discretion. Not saying it didn't happen, just saying it's going to be a tough case to make.
He made captain in 13 years. Must have a serious juice card somewhere.
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