FORMER NEW YORK CITY POLICE OFFICER AND BANK TELLER ACCOMPLICE INDICTED FOR MANHATTAN BANK ROBBERY

MICHAEL J. GARCIA, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today the Indictment of CHRISTIAN TORRES, 22, of Queens, New York, and CHRISTINA DASRATH, 20, of the Bronx, New York, for conspiring to defraud a Manhattan bank (the “Bank”), bank larceny, and bank robbery. DASRATH was also charged with making false statements to investigators. According to the Indictment filed today and Complaints previously filed in Manhattan federal court:

Between June 2007 and April 2008, TORRES—who was during that time serving as a New York City Police Officer—and DASRATH, a teller at a branch of the bank, conspired to defraud the Bank by falsely creating the impression that an unknown man had robbed DASRATH at her teller station, when in fact TORRES and DASRATH were acting in concert to take the money. On June 8, 2007, after DASRATH provided TORRES with information about the Bank’s security procedures, TORRES entered the Bank, located at 57 Avenue A, New York, New York, and handed DASRATH a note directing her to “empty both drawers,” and threatening to “start shooting.” DASRATH then handed TORRES $16,305 from her teller drawer. TORRES later gave DASRATH a portion of the stolen money.

On November 16, 2007, TORRES again robbed the same bank, approaching employees of the Bank as they were opening the branch and ordering them to open the door. When one of the employees refused, TORRES threatened to kill the employee, and pulled back the side of his jacket to reveal the black handle of a gun that was tucked into his waistband.

Once inside the bank, TORRES stood behind the employees, telling them not to look at him and to walk to the vault in the back. TORRES ordered the employees to leave their cellular telephones on a table outside the vault, which they did, then to open the vault. After the vault was opened, TORRES ordered one of the employees to tie up the legs of another employee using rope TORRES had brought with him. After retrieving latex gloves from a duffel bag he was carrying and putting on a black ski mask, TORRES instructed one of the employees to place currency inside the bag, stating that he wanted 100s, 50s, and 20s. The employee complied. TORRES then ordered the employees into the vault, took their keys, and told them to stay in the vault for ten minutes, adding that if one of them looked at him funny, he would be back. During the robbery, TORRES stole approximately $102,000, and later delivered a portion of the stolen money to DASRATH.

The Indictment charges that after each of the robberies, on June 8, 2007, and November 16, 2007, DASRATH lied to law enforcement officials investigating the robberies and concealed her relationship with TORRES.

TORRES and DASRATH are each charged with one count of conspiring to commit bank fraud, which carries a maximum sentence of thirty years in prison; one count of bank larceny, which carries a maximum sentence of ten years in prison; and one count of bank robbery, which carries a maximum sentence of twenty-five years in prison. DASRATH is also charged with making false statements to investigators, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

Mr. GARCIA praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New York City Police Department.

This case is being handled by the Office’s Public Corruption Unit. Assistant United States Attorney DANIEL STEIN is in charge of the prosecution.

The charges contained in the Indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

08-144

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