NYPD on surveillance.
Photo: Andrés Correa Guatarasma / Courtesy
Thomas Diorio and Michael Sardone, two NYPD agents, were caught offering an expensive “taxi” service for high-level prostitutes who wanted a police escort to their jobs, reveal recently released disciplinary records.
The officers, both from the 106 Precinct in Queens, were caught in a covert operation, where several officers posed as prostitutes who paid thousands of dollars to get to and from hotels, sometimes saying that they were carrying “drugs.”
During one of the trips last spring, the two policemen were convinced to go up to a hotel room to confront a client – actually another undercover cop – who did not want to pay for the sexual service he had allegedly received.
Following the scandal, Sardone retired, while Diorio was fired on August 17 after he failed to appear for a departmental trial on August 9. Details of the sting operation were revealed in a disciplinary report released this week. It is unclear if any of the former officers will face a criminal investigation.
It all started in February, when an undercover police officer began texting Sardone, telling him that she worked as an escort. On April 6 he called Sardone and asked if he was interested in being a driver for her and other prostitutes, as his regular driver was ill, according to the report.
After a little planning, all captured by video surveillance and audio, decided to set a price of $ 4,000 dollars, and on April 9 Sardone and Diorio encountered three “prostitutes” in the parking lot of a restaurant in Queens and took them to a hotel in Manhattan.
The “client” of the escorts, also an undercover officer, tipped the two officers $ 100 and they waited for a text message to pick up the women and take them back to the Queens restaurant, according to the report.
One of the fake prostitutes said she was taking her “coke” and grabbed several bags of what appeared to be cocaine. The next day, Sardone drew some boundaries, saying that he and Diorio would prefer the women not to carry drugs in case they were stopped.
When a lieutenant from the Office of Internal Affairs questioned Diorio in June, he repeatedly said that he did not remember anything that happened.
Neither officer has offered comment following the report’s release. And the NYPD did not immediately respond to a request from the Daily News.
eldiariony.com
Eddie is an Australian news reporter with over 9 years in the industry and has published on Forbes and tech crunch.