Valerie Cincinelli pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice. Clearly, with good behavior he deserves six months of house arrest.
Cincinelli paid her one-time boyfriend, John DiRubba, $7,000 to hire a hitman to kill her estranged husband, Isaiah Carvalho, amid a bitter divorce and custody battle over their son.
DiRubba went to the authorities when Cincinelli wanted to involve DiRubba’s 15-year-old daughter in the conspiracy.
“I removed the images on an iPhone, intended to obstruct a federal grand jury investigation into murder for hire,” Cincinelli said during a hearing on the petition. “I knew what I did was wrong, and I’m really sorry, Hon.”
Related | Speaks differently from cop’s husband in murder for hire conspiracy
If the case went to trial, federal prosecutors said they would have presented evidence that included audio and video recordings of Cincinelli discussing the conspiracy and an excuse.
During the virtual hearing Cincinelli, who has been in custody since his 2019 arrest, cried, “I haven’t seen my son for two years.”
Carvalho was also in court on Friday. He told the judge that Cincinelli was cruel and selfish.
But Cincinelli’s defense attorney painted a very different picture, saying she was trapped by the men in her life.
“And then she suffered an incredible barrage over the course of a year in which Dirubba and her husband conspired to ruin her life,” said attorney James Cusoros.
Cincinelli herself went to the judge in tears and explained how she went unhurt, saying, “I’m apologizing from the bottom of my heart… I can’t believe I found myself in that place, that dark place.” Let go of the place.”
But her husband’s divorce lawyer had this to say:
“I think her tears were because she was caught, I don’t think she is remorseful in any way,” said attorney Denise Lemke.
Her plea agreement called for a prison sentence of about five years. Federal prosecutors agreed not to seek more than 60 months behind bars, but on Friday he was sentenced to 48.
Cincinelli, 36, resigned from the NYPD after a career spanning 12 years. She was assigned to the “Video Interactive Patrol Enhanced Response” or VIPER unit, whose members monitor security cameras at the city’s housing projects. The unit is largely made up of officers on duty modified due to other violations, and officials say there were domestic incidents involving lovers and ex-husbands in Cincinelli that led to them being assigned there.
Prior to this, he was assigned to the 106th Precinct in Queens.
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