Mt. Vernon deputy police commissioner faces charges after using city car

New Rochelle police say Mount Vernon Deputy Police Commissioner Joseph Spiezio faces charges after he was caught driving a city vehicle Sunday.

News 12 Staff

Feb 4, 2019, 5:21 PM

Updated 1,999 days ago

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New Rochelle police say Mount Vernon Deputy Police Commissioner Joseph Spiezio faces charges after he was caught driving a city vehicle Sunday.
Officials say Spiezio was charged with third-degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a vehicle after he was caught driving through New Rochelle in a Mount Vernon-owned 2017 Suburban. They say Spiezio was using a police horn to pull over drivers so he could pass them.
Police say Spiezio was also driving on a suspended license.
Spiezio is the second high-ranking city official in two months to find himself in a predicament. Building Commissioner Dan Jones was arrested for allegedly driving drunk in a city-owned car with a suspended license last month. Investigators say when Jones was arrested, his blood alcohol level was more than three times the legal limit.
The mayor's spokesperson tells News 12 that the incident is under review. They confirmed Spiezio was ticketed in a license-related manner, and insists when there is more information to report they will.
Spiezio has long been the subject of controversy in the city. He's a close ally of Mayor Richard Thomas, but many people, including the City Council president, have questioned how someone with no law enforcement and apparently not a resident of the state could get appointed to such a high position in the police department
 City Council members say they blame the mayor.

“The mayor has got to be accountable. the mayor is the one who appointed him so at this point, the mayor needs to remove him,” says City Councilmember Andre Wallace.

Mayor Thomas was not available for comment, but his spokesman says Spiezio has been placed on administrative leave until this matter is resolved.
 
 


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