NY pols kept Dem aide on staff for months despite claims he was videoed soliciting a teen
Fox News
A legislative aide in Westchester County, New York, was fired months after a sting operation allegedly found he was texting lewd messages to who he thought was a 14-year-old girl and then driving to New Jersey to reportedly meet her.
Anand Singh, 33, who worked as a legislative aide for the Westchester County Board of Legislators, was fired April 13, months after some lawmakers in the county were tipped off in December that Singh allegedly tried to solicit a 14-year-old girl, the New York Post reported.
A vigilante group that works to obliterate “predators globally” while educating viewers “on the dangers that loom our world,” OBL Global, livestreamed the sting operation back in December and posted the video publicly on April 12.
The 31-minute video shows a man, reportedly Singh, messaging with someone he thought was a 14-year-old female, but was actually an OBL Global “decoy.” The messages become more sexual in nature, the video shows, with Singh allegedly saying he could “def teach” her “a thing or two,” speculating that she weighs less than 100 pounds, and asking if she was on birth control.
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“What are you gonna bring tomorrow,” the decoy asks in a phone call, according to the video.
“I can bring some toys. You know, Plan B,” Singh allegedly responds before saying, “I’ll see you in a bit, baby girl.”
Singh allegedly thought he was meeting up with the teenager in Newark, New Jersey, but was confronted by OBL Global. Members of the vigilante group are seen asking the man why he would target a young girl and informing him that he will get arrested.
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The Westchester District Attorney’s Office said in a comment provided to Fox News Digital that its office became aware of the allegations on April 14, and “immediately began looking into the matter.” Two lawmakers are meanwhile calling for Board of Legislators Chairwoman Catherine Borgia, a Democrat, to resign over her handling of the matter.
“I think she should resign,” Democratic Legislator Damon Maher told he New York Post last week, though he added she should not resign fully from the board. “That’s basically all I can say at this point, that I’m convinced the facts that have been delivered to me today and over the last few days, but especially today, I think she mishandled the situation.”
Republican legislator James Nolan wants her to resign both as chair and from the board. Nolan is also calling for the commissioner of the county’s public safety to step down over alleged mishandling of the matter, the Post reported.
Borgia said in a video statement last week that she has been taking the accusations “very seriously” since she first found out about them, and has referred the case to the FBI.
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“At the time, Public Safety was unable to substantiate the claim that a video existed,” she said in the video. “While the video investigation was occurring, the employee was removed from public-facing duties.”
Legislator Colin Smith, a Democrat, said he received an email in December from a woman recounting the sting operation and Singh’s alleged actions, which he says he forwarded to the board clerk, who sent the email to Borgia and the local Department of Public Safety, according to the Journal News. The woman did not include video of the incident within the email, according to the outlet.
The email reportedly included “a warning that this vigilante group may try to come to the Board of Legislators at some point to confront this employee,” Smith said, according to the Journal News.
Smith said he got another email from the woman in February outlining that she had proof of Singh’s alleged actions, which he said he forwarded to the Department of Public Safety. Smith was again contacted via email this month saying the video was publicly posted.
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Borgia posted a letter she wrote to the U.S. Attorney’s Office also requesting they investigate the matter.
“Allegations surrounding Mr. Singh’s soliciting an underage girl became apparent when a video surfaced on YouTube that shows Mr. Singh contacted what he believed was an underage girl,” she wrote in the letter to the US Attorney.
She said in her video message that the FBI’s Safe Streets Task Force is investigating the matter. The FBI declined to comment when approached by Fox News Digital to confirm the agency is investigating.
No arrest for Singh has been announced, according to the New York Post.
Borgia’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.