|
Bounty hunter faces gun counts
The charges come after he and his partner mistakenly captured a Rutherford woman
Thursday, August 04, 2005
BY BRIAN DONOHUE
Star-Ledger Staff
One of two bounty hunters who mistakenly captured a Rutherford woman last month surrendered to police yesterday to face charges of carrying a weapon without required permits.
William Whitaker, owner of Mantis Recovery Service in Philadelphia, faces two counts of carrying a handgun without a permit, authorities said.
The first charge stems from the incident on June 28 when Whitaker and his partner, Christopher Rue, led a frightened Rutherford woman away from her home in handcuffs. The woman was released 35 miles away in Morris County when the agents realized they had the wrong person.
The second charge came after Whitaker reported to the Rutherford Police Department for questioning about the incident several days later.
Rutherford police said that in both instances, Whitaker was carrying a handgun, though he lacks a permit to carry a weapon in New Jersey. The third-degree crime carries a penalty of three to five years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000.
Rue has not been charged.
At a hearing in Rutherford Municipal Court on Tuesday, Whitaker's attorney entered a not guilty plea to both charges. As Whitaker walked with his attorney into police headquarters to be photographed and fingerprinted, he declined to comment.
Whitaker and Rue were looking for Claudia Patricia Rincon, a fugitive in Morris County who had jumped bail on an embezzlement charge. Instead, they went to the Rutherford home of Claudia Santana -- who may have closely matched a photograph of Rincon.
The two men took Santana away in handcuffs. They released her in Dover after police there discovered the bounty hunters had the wrong woman. Santana has described the incident as harrowing. Her attorney said she is planning a lawsuit.
Whitaker's attorney, Frank Cutruzzula, declined to comment yesterday on how the mistake occurred, saying he had not seen the evidence in the case.
He said Whitaker had been contracted by an insurance company that held the bail bond for Rincon.
Cutruzzula said Whitaker had been trained and certified as a bail recovery agent. In addition to hisbail recovery agency, Whitaker also runs a boxing school, he said.
Rutherford police Sgt. Nicholas Loizzi has been charged with filing false reports in the incident. Three other Rutherford officers have been placed on administrative leave.
The bounty hunters had alerted Rutherford police before they went to Santana's home the night of the incident. When Santana called 911 after the men arrived at her house, Rutherford police arrived and allowed the bounty hunters to take her into custody.
Santana's attorney, Robert Morici, said police should have taken greater steps to confirm the bounty hunters had the right person.
"The most troubling thing here is what the police did or failed to do," Morici said. "It seems to me that someone there, or more than one person, dropped the ball or didn't do what they were supposed to do."
_________________
Lance Allen Wilkinson
Recoveries by L.A.W.
Serving since 1984
“What is sought is found... what is overlooked escapes” (Oedipus Rex)
|
