A former Brooklyn Assistant District Attorney has been charged with illegally wiretapping cellular telephones. Tara Lenich, 41, of New York, was arraigned on two counts of wiretapping.
The indictment alleges that Lenich created fraudulent judicial orders and forged the signatures of multiple New York State judges to authorize the wiretapping. She then used KCDA equipment to intercept and record communications to and from two cellular telephones.
Lenich also created fraudulent search warrants to obtain text messages relating to the two cellular telephones. The charges were announced by Bridget M. Rohde, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney, Jr., Assistant Director-in-Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office.
"Tara Lenich violated her duty to the public when she engaged in a long-running scheme to forge judicial documents in order to illegally wiretap telephones," stated Acting United States Attorney Rohde. "Lenich’s prosecution reflects the Office’s commitment to protecting the public from the misuse of law enforcement tools, particularly by those entrusted to use those tools in accordance with the laws they have sworn to uphold."
In announcing the indictment, Ms. Rohde thanked the Kings County District Attorney’s Office for their cooperation. William F. Sweeney, Jr. stated, "In this case, as alleged, Lenich’s illegal wiretapping scheme demonstrates an abuse of power that won’t be tolerated within our criminal justice system. Unfortunately, sometimes those close to the law stray far from the truth. As demonstrated today, however, everyone is expected to play by the rules; for this we’ll make no exceptions."
Lenich faces up to five years’ imprisonment on each count if convicted. The government’s case is being prosecuted by the Office’s Public Integrity Section. Assistant United States Attorneys Robert Polemeni and Maria Cruz Melendez are in charge of the prosecution.
Related Federal Cases
- Wall Street Firms, Financial Malfeasance, New York NY, 2023 · New York
- Christopher Ferguson, PPE Scam, New York NY, 2023 · Ohio
- Todd Faustin, Workers’ Compensation Fraud, New York NY, 2023 · Ohio
- Kenneth Thom, Investment Adviser Fraud, New York NY, 2026 · Virginia
- Kenneth Thom, Investment Adviser Fraud, New York NY, 2023 · North Carolina
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Public Corruption|Cybercrime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News