Rye Brook PD Arrest 3 in Connection with Impersonation Robbery

They said it was robbery, but a June 15 police impersonation case was really a drug caper gone wrong.

"It was an elaborate set-up to rip off six ounces of marijuana," said Detective Sergeant Terence Wilson. "These guys were young and pretty dumb."

“It is important for the public to know that there are not two people masquerading as police officers in Rye Brook robbing innocent people” said Chief Gregory J Austin. 

Ralph Russo, 19, of Port Chester, was arrested with two juveniles aged 17 and 18.

It was Russo who flagged down Rye Brook police to report he had been robbed by two men posing as police. In fact, there was much more to the story. 

According to Det. Sgt. Wilson, Russo eventually told police that he and his passenger had arranged by telephone to sell six ounces of marijuana for $2,700 and planned to meet their customers in Rye Brook to make the exchange.

"He knew who they were," said Wilson. "They were there to make the transaction."

Instead they were pulled over by two juveniles who said they were police officers. The juveniles stole the marijuana from Russo and sped off in their white Taurus.

Russo tried to catch up with the double-crossing, counterfeit cops in his own car. After passing a real Rye Brook police unit, Russo had the bright idea to flag the real officers down and report he had been robbed.

Det. Sgt. Wilson said Rye Brook PD was able to get the real story very quickly, making their first arrest in the case at 5:20 a.m., hours after the incident occurred.

"They all started to fall from there," he said. Police got another break by following a hunch about the Hutch.

"We took a shot at going to the gas station on the Hutch," said Wilson. "We got lucky they happened to stop there."

From surveillanve video, police were able to establish there were a total of 5 parties involved in the incident and tracked down the juveniles in Queens.

By that time, however, the suspects claim they accidentally threw the marijuana away while trying to conceal it from a K-9 checkpoint on the Whitestone Bridge. Wilson says the suspects claim they meant to hide the contraband in an empty bottle of Gatorade to disguise the scent, but accidentally threw it away with other empty drink bottles in a panic.

Russo, a cooperating witness, has been charged with making a punishable, false written statement. He was released after arraignment on $250 bail.

The two juveniles were charged with criminal impersonation and released on their own recognizance.