NYPD Officer Accused In Monstrous Plot To Kidnap, Cook Women
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- It is what can only be described as a gruesome and extremely disturbing plot -- allegedly crafted by a New York City police officer.
Gilberto Valle, 28, is a married, six-year veteran of the force assigned to the 26th Precinct. He is accused of planning to kidnap, cook and eat -- as many as 100 women.
Investigators said his meticulous plan included the intentional torture of his victims.
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Web Extra: Criminal Complaint Against Gilberto Valle
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The accused "cannibal cop" was set to go before a judge Wednesday evening to face the charges that he plotted an elaborate scheme, while keeping a detailed database of dozens upon dozens of potential victims, CBS 2's Dick Brennan reported.
Valle's alleged barbaric plot involved months of scheming with at least two co-conspirators online to abduct women, kill them, and eat their cooked remains, the FBI said.
"As it came together and they followed these discussions going through the summer, about kidnapping individual people, they had monitoring these chat rooms and then yesterday arrested Valle," CBS News Senior Correspondent John Miller said.
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The FBI obtained detailed accounts of the plan, dating back to January, by searching Valle's computer. On the hard drive there were individual files for at least 100 women, officials said.
One document is entitled: "Abducting and Cooking (Victim #1): A Blueprint." Specific information about that victim including her bra size is spelled out, as are the plans for the car he would use to kidnap her, the chloroform used to subdue, and the rope to tie her up.
Valle talked about his sick plot in an online chat:
"How big is your oven?" a co-conspirator asks.
"Big enough to fit one of these girls if I folded their legs....The abduction will have to be flawless...I know all of them...as for Victim #1, I can just show up at her home unannounced. It will not alert her, and I can knock her out, wait until dark, and kidnap her right out of her home," Valle says.
A co-conspirator says: "How could we put her over the fire, spitting kills the girl. Have to put her in kind of cage. What is your favorite cut of meat."
Valle responds: "I was thinking of tying her body to some kind of apparatus... cook her over low heat, keep her alive as long as possible."
And then there is more sick chatter. Valle says, "I love that she is asleep right now not having the slightest clue what we have planned. She does look tasty doesn't she?"
The co-conspirator answers: "You know if we don't waste any of her there is nearly 75 pounds of food here."
Forensic psychologist Dr. N.G. Berrill told CBS 2's Jessica Schneider he's not sure how true Valle's posts really were.
"Typically, the individuals that I've encountered who have actually engaged in serial murders or engaged in cannibalism don't really write about it," Dr. Berrill said.
Valle passed the psychological test for the NYPD, and has no history of violence. His attorney told CBS 2's Schneider the alleged plot is all just one big twisted fantasy, but the government maintains he was ready to act.
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The FBI said Valle did meet with the intended female victim at a restaurant for lunch on July 22, but it appears nothing happened.
Valle also allegedly had a clear plot for a second victim, agreeing to kidnap her for $5,000, but it doesn't appear he followed through with that scheme either. However, he's now charged with conspiring to kidnap, using a national police database to get information on his intended victims, and he has now been suspended from the NYPD, CBS 2's Brennan reported.
Officially, Valle is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000. He is also charged with one count of intentionally and knowingly accessing a computer without authorization and exceeding his authorized access for allegedly using police computers to locate potential victims, officials said.
"What we know is the police officer is charged. He was going to be the facilitator, the kidnapper here," Miller said. "He was doing it for money. He was part of the plot. But the big unanswered questions are, so who is 'Mr. Big' who was forking out allegedly $5,000 to have somebody kidnapped? And what was his ultimate plan, to cook these people? And how many people were involved?"
CBS 2's John Slattery spoke with Valle's shocked father Wednesday. He goes by the same name as his now infamous son and told Slattery he had just learned the news when CBS 2 caught up with him in Forest Hills.
"Just saw on TV, going to police now," Gilberto Valle said, adding when asked what he could tell the public, "Not a goddamn thing.
"I'm going to find out what's going on. I don't know."
Slattery asked Valle's father many questions related to the stunning allegations, but he was clearly overwhelmed.
"I'm shocked," he said, adding he'd "never" heard his son discuss the alleged plot or cannibalism.
The police officer lives in Forest Hills. Neighbors said he has a young daughter, but may be estranged from his wife. At his apartment, there was no answer. Neighbors said they had trouble believing the bizarre charges.
"It sounds like a movie, not anything real," Riki Quinn said.
"It's the kind of thing you only see on TV. [It's] a surprise he lives in the building," Shlomo Walker said.
"I'm surprised with this guy, you know? He doesn't look like something like that. No. Nice. Nice person," building handyman Rafael Marichal added.
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