FDNY Fire Inspector charged in Day Care Scam

Posted by: Curt Varone January 10, 2012 0

An FDNY Fire Inspector has been charged in a massive bribery scheme involving Brooklyn day care centers.

Inspector Carlos Montoya was arraigned last Friday in Federal District Court in Manhattan, and released on $100,000 bond. The investigation, dubbed “Operation Pay Care”, involved a joint investigation led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and New York City Department of Investigation. It exposed a 1 million dollar scam affecting a city subsidized day care program.

Montoya’s role in the scheme was to ignore safety violations so that permits for the day care centers could be issued or renewed. He worked for the FDNY as a Fire Protection Inspector since 1993 and served as Supervising Inspector since 2003. He oversaw fire inspections of all day care centers in the City.

Montoya has been charged Federally with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and conspiracy to receive bribes in connection with a federally-subsidized program. No word if he will be charged with any state law crimes.

More on the story.

US Attorney’s press release on Montoya.

About Curt Varone

Curt Varone has over 45 years of fire service experience and 35 as a practicing attorney licensed in both Rhode Island and Maine. His background includes 29 years as a career firefighter in Providence (retiring as a Deputy Assistant Chief), as well as volunteer and paid on call experience. He is the author of two books: Legal Considerations for Fire and Emergency Services, (2006, 2nd ed. 2011, 3rd ed. 2014, 4th ed. 2022) and Fire Officer's Legal Handbook (2007), and is a contributing editor for Firehouse Magazine writing the Fire Law column.
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