A commuter van company owner who filed a complaint to a city council member last month about threat and extortion employed by rivals, was arrested by the police. The prosecutor said on April 15 that Michael Lee allegedly bribed a police officer at the 109th precinct in Queens, in return he asked the officers to issue more tickets to rival commuter van drivers.
Lee, 55, was bailed out for $10,000 cash. The jury hearing is scheduled for the end of May.
According to the prosecutor, L&W Express Van Service, which is owned by Lee, and other commuter van companies share a bus stop on 41 Avenue in Flushing. The commuter vans operate between Flushing and Chinatown in Manhattan. Because disputes among drivers occur frequently, police officer Kevin O'Donnell was appointed by the precinct to coordinate the operations at the stop.
The prosecutor said that on March 13, 2008, O'Donnell issued tickets to several commuter van drivers for violation of parking regulations at the intersection of Main Street and 41st Avenue. Four days later, Lee called O'Donnell and requested a meeting with him at the precinct to discuss the commuter vans’ situation and tickets issued in the previous weekends. At one point, O'Donnell suggested to re-schedule the meeting to engage all the company owners.
Shortly after 1 p.m., when O'Donnell was about to drive home, Lee showed up in the parking lot and complained about the number of tickets and the negative impact on his business. According to the prosecutor, Lee tapped on O'Donnell's shoulder and said he would pay the officer $10,000 to “help and do something.”
Documents show that on March 20, 2008, Lee paid O'Donnell $5000 and urged him to issue more tickets to rival drivers, and to stop issuing ticket to L&W's drivers. Lee promised to pay another $5,000 to the officer after it was done. In addition, starting from May 1, 2008, Lee would pay $1,000 on a monthly basis, with the condition that O'Donnell never issue another ticket to his drivers.
During his second meeting with Lee, O'Donnell began to collect evidence and on March 24, 2008, he arrested Lee under the charge of public bribery. On April 9, Lee was posted for $10,000 bail.
