Police department recognizes 2007 Merit Award recipients

Several members of the Amherst Police Department were honored with Merit Awards on Oct. 9. Pictured from left to right: Chief John Askey, Assistant Chief Tim Green, Detective Ed Monan, Detective Mike Rose, Detective Lt. Joseph LaCorte, Lt. Ted DiNoto, Officer Todd Homberger, Officer Tracy Martin, Officer Tim Carney, Officer John Fiore, Officer Jeff Gilbert, and Officer Robert Stephens. Photo by John Rusac Purchase color photos at www.BeeNews.com

The Amherst Police Department recently held its annual Merit Award presentation on Oct. 9 in Chief John Askey's office. The following members were recognized:

Officers Tom Brown and

John Fiore

On April 4, 2007, at about 4 a.m., Officer John Fiore stopped a suspicious vehicle in front of the Verizon facility on Millersport Highway. Fiore observed that the operator was nervous and unable to produce any identification. Fiore began to question the driver and Officer Tom Brown assisted by questioning the passenger. Through questioning it was learned that these two suspects, and two others that left the area, were planning to break into the Verizon facility and steal equipment.

The outstanding suspects were located by Amherst officers in an other jurisdiction. At this location, a significant amount of stolen property belonging to Verizon was located. Fiore and Brown's initial investigation, and follow up led to the execution of several search warrants, and the recovery of tens of thousands of dollars worth of stolen equipment and tools from Verizon.

Officer Tracy Martin

On May 5, 2007 at about 5 p.m. Officer Tracy Martin observed a suspicious male teen on foot. Martin noticed the suspect was attempting to conceal something in his waistband. Martin continued to observe the suspect, who then stopped abruptly, acting as if something fell down his pant leg. Martin summoned back up, and eventually approached the youth.

During the interview the suspect admitted he had a loaded "sawed off" rifle in his pants. Officer Martin grabbed the rifle, and took the suspect into custody without incident. A check of the serial number revealed that the rifle was recently stolen in the City of Buffalo. Further investigation revealed that the suspect was a member of a street gang named "Pratt Money Boyz."

"Due to Officer Martin's observations and quick decisive action she was able to control a dangerous situation and recover a stolen weapon," said Capt. Charles Cohen.

Officers Jeff Gilbert,

Todd Homberger and

Bob Stephens

On Dec. 22, 2006 at about 10:30 a.m. officers responded to an armed robbery at the Boulevard Federal Credit Union, Officer Jeff Gilbert arrived in less than one minute. Learning that the suspects had left the area, Gilbert began checking escape routes and located an occupied vehicle on a side street near the bank.

After determining that this vehicle was involved in the robbery, he took the sole occupant of the vehicle into custody. Officers Todd Homberger and Bob Stephens began to check a wooded area behind the bank and located a suspect running through the woods with a hand gun. After a brief foot pursuit, the suspect threw down his gun and was taken into custody without incident. A search of the area was conducted resulting in the recovery of a loaded .45 caliber handgun, and $90,000.00 taken in the robbery.

"The superior physical condition and patrol tactics employed by these officers led to a timely and peaceful resolution to a violent felony committed in our Town," Cohen said.

Officers Nick Scioli and

Tim Carney

On Nov. 3, 2006 at about 9:15 p.m. Officer Nick Scioli stopped a vehicle for illegal window tint. The vehicle pulled into the parking lot of a local motel. The driver of the vehicle was acting suspiciously and appeared to be intentionally blocking Scioli's view of the center console. Officer Tim Carney responded to assist Scioli.

"Together they began to interview the driver who became increasingly agitated and uncooperative. The officers became convinced that the suspect was hiding either a weapon or contraband in the center console and he was asked to exit the vehicle," Cohen said.

The driver refused to comply, and instead started his car and rolled all the windows up. The officers were eventually able to convince the suspect to exit the vehicle; however he physically resisted attempts to retrieve the keys. A search of the center console revealed a bag containing more than an eighth of an ounce of crack cocaine, a smoking pipe, and a quantity of marijuana. An "Intratec AB 10" assault rifle and a loaded magazine were located in a bag on the floor of the front passenger seat.

"The observations and tenacity of these officers led to the arrest of a violent felon, and took an assault weapon of our streets," Cohen commented.

Detective Lieutenant

Joseph LaCorte

Lieutenant Joseph LaCorte has been involved with the "Bike Path Rapist "case since 1991. Most recently, he was the immediate supervisor of the Task Force members from the Amherst Police Department. He played a critical role in that he was in charge of all "tips" that came in from various sources. LaCorte made sure that each tip was evaluated, properly logged, and assigned to the Task Force for follow up.

" In addition to the overwhelming responsibility of accounting for all the tips, LaCorte also maintained a presence working with the other agencies involved in this effort," Cohen said, adding, LaCorte was not afraid to make difficult decisions or to call upon supervisors from other jurisdictions in order to clarify strategies and tactics.

"LaCorte has in the past, and continues to represent the Amherst Police Department in a most favorable and professional manner," Cohen said.

Detective Edward Monan

Detective Edward Monan was assigned to the "Bike Path Rapist" case in 1999. He literally started from square one, studying thousands of pages of information and potential suspects. During this process, he developed different strategies for identifying suspects, and re-evaluating the suspect pool. When the most recent case was tied to the "Bike Path Rapist", Monan was sought out by the other agencies for his input as he was the most familiar with this string of violent crimes. Monan worked side by side with Task Force members and continuously demonstrated investigative proficiency and knowledge.

Detectives Ted DiNoto

and Michael Rose

Detectives Ted DiNoto and Michael Rose were assigned to the "Bike Path Rapist" Task Force and played a critical role. They not only sorted through their share of tips and leads, but also had to "hit the streets" and track down potential suspects. They also preformed other tasks including research on license plate numbers and addresses. Rose, along with Monan, also assisted in collecting critical evidence that helped lead to the positive identification of the suspect.

Detective Bureau

Unit Citation

With the successful resolution of the "Bike Path Rapist" case now behind the department, the Awards Committee has recommended the Amherst Police Departments Detective Bureau for a Unit Citation.

"Every member of the Bureau helped to clear the Amherst portion of the 1,200 tips received. Most of the work was tedious and laborious in nature, yet each detective had to remain focused and work with a high level of attentiveness," Cohen said. "In addition to performing a major part of the behind-the-scenes type of work, the detectives continued to handle their regular case load, thus serving the Town of Amherst in an exemplary fashion."