A jealous NYPD detective paid thousands of dollars to get his fellow officers’ e-mail log-in information because he thought someone was sleeping with his baby mama, law-enforcement sources told The Post.
Edwin Vargas, 42, shelled out more than $4,000 to a Los Angeles company to obtain information on 20 of his NYPD colleagues including his cop ex-girlfriend, the sources said yesterday.
He accessed the account of at least one person, prosecutors said.
Vargas also allegedly dug up personal information on two cops using the FBI’s National Crime Information Center, and accessed the phone records of one victim.
The feds found a file on his work computer that had contact information for his victims, including e-mail accounts and apparent passwords, according to a complaint filed in Manhattan federal court.
The alleged scheme began in 2010.
In some cases, Vargas communicated with the hacking company, which was not named, by freeloading off his neighbor’s wireless connections, the complaint said.
One cop said that Vargas’ allegedly creepy behavior has been an issue for years — and that he even pursued his co-workers’ ex-wives and girlfriends.
“Once the cops broke up with their girlfriend, he would move in for the kill,” the source said.
Vargas was disciplined last year for allegedly stalking his ex, with whom he has a young child, the sources said.
He was penalized five vacation days and was transferred from the 40th to the 44th Precinct, both in The Bronx.
The woman, who was not identified, complained at the time that she was being stalked, and said that Vargas had sent her harassing texts and called her names, the sources said.
The cop was convinced that she was sleeping with his co-workers, the sources said.
His lawyer, James Moschella, described Vargas as “a highly decorated and highly valued member of the Police Department.”
Vargas has been suspended without pay for 30 days. He was released on $50,000 bond.
Republished with permission of The New York Post.
