LI Police Officer Stole, Tried To Sell Encrypted Radio: DA

A Hempstead Village police officer was charged with stealing a police radio that he planned to sell to a tow truck company, officials said.

Officer Robert Van Wyen, 32, of Islip, surrendered himself to the Nassau County Police Department this morning, and was later arraigned and charged with third-degree grand larceny, third-degree criminal possession of stolen property, fourth-degree grand larceny, official misconduct and unauthorized use of a computer.

Van Wyen is due back in court on April 16. If convicted of the top charge, he faces up to seven years in prison.

“Listening to confidential, scrambled police communications can give a valuable advantage to a private towing company, or even imperil the safety of law enforcement,” said Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas. “This police officer’s alleged attempt steal a police radio and sell it for thousands in cash is a betrayal of his oath as an officer, a crime against the taxpayers, and our prosecutors will hold him accountable.”

According to Singas, her office received a tip in January 2017 that a Hempstead police officer had stolen a portable radio from the department. After an investigation, Singas said her office determined that Van Wyen stole the Motorola radio and intended to sell it to a towing company for $10,000.

All police radios in Nassau County are encrypted with proprietary software, Singas said. A towing company with one of those radios could learn about car crashes before its competition, giving it a huge advantage.

The investigation is ongoing.