As stories of heroism are revealed in the aftermath of Sandy, the sacrifice of off-duty NYPD cop Artur Kasprzak will likely not be forgotten.
Kasprzak, 28, drowned Monday night after rescuing seven members of his family, including his 15-month-old son, from the raging flood waters filling the basement of his Staten Island home, CBS New York reports.
After ushering them into the attic, Kasprzak said he was going to check the basement one more time, according to an NYPD release. He never returned.
The family’s 911 call spurred the NYPD to dispatch scuba divers in Zodiac boats and jet skis to the home, but they couldn’t reach it because of downed power lines snaking through the water, according to multiple reports.
A search party finally entered the home around 7 a.m. Tuesday, finding Kasprzak’s body in the basement. Kasprzak’s father and girlfriend were among those he saved, according to reports. He was a 6-year veteran of the NYPD.
The NYPD tends to catch a pretty terrible rap in many places around the web. Regardless of how you feel about that criticism’s legitimacy, I think we can all agree that truly heroic actions should always be shown the recognition that they deserve. Our thoughts go out to the family, friends, and loved ones of Officer Artur Kasprzak, as well as everyone else currently affected by the rain, wind, and snow blanketing the East coast.
Still ticking after 53 years: A man in Endicott, New York, received quite a surprise: the gold, 23-jewel wristwatch stolen from him during his time in the Navy was returned to him. His aunt gave it to him in 1958, but someone stole it. A couple in Las Vegas tracked down Ed Grigor and mailed the watch back to him. “Taking the watch out of the package, I held it for the first time in over 53 years with tears of joy in my eyes,” Grigor said. He named it “Time Traveler.” source
The suspect, 21-year-old Quazi Mohammad Rezwanul Ahsan Nafis, is a Bangladeshi national who came to the U.S. on a student visa in January for the specific purpose of launching a terror attack here, authorities said. He allegedly told an undercover agent last month that he hoped the attack would disrupt the presidential election, saying “You know what, this election might even stop,” according to the criminal complaint against him.
Authorities say Nafis bought what he thought were explosives from who he thought was “an al-Qaida facilitator.” It was actually an FBI agent, and Nafis was arrested by the bureau after parking a truck full of the “explosives” next to the New York City Federal Reserve building and attempting to detonate it with a cell phone. A statement praising “our beloved Sheikh Osama bin Laden” and claiming responsibility for attack was found on a thumb drive on his body. source
Defendants systematically failed to fully evaluate the loans, largely ignored the defects that their limited review did uncover, and kept investors in the dark about both the inadequacy of their review procedures and the defects in the underlying loans.The office of New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman • Discussing the fraud lawsuit filed against JPMorgan on Monday, regarding defective loans backing securities which allegedly cost their investors billions of dollars. The lawsuit involves a firm which was owned by Bear Stearns, which JPMorgan purchased in 2008 amidst the financial crisis. (JPMorgan would like to emphasize that the charges are “historic” in nature.) The lawsuit is the first action by the the Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities Working Group, a task force which is basically going back and taking on the faults that caused the financial crisis — years after the fact.
Crowded cities test micro apartments
(Photo: Nightly News)
Cities such as New York and San Francisco are developing living spaces that are 200 to 300 square feet for residents willing to pare down to the bare essentials. NBC’s Kristen Dahlgren reports.
Would you consider living in a micro apartment?
True story: The first apartment I looked at when moving to DC was about this big. It also cost $1,400 a month.
Details are starting to emerge about a shooting near the Empire State Building earlier this morning. The latest reports have at least 10 victims confirmed, including the suspect, who was shot and killed by police officers.
Pretty crazy stuff this morning. The New York Post describes the shooting as a disagreement between co-workers that got out of hand.
» Why did they settle? Well, to put it simply, it was starting to turn into a PR crisis. While they disagreed with the state of New York’s portrayal of the situation, the regulatory body had some pretty decent ammo against the bank, including an exec saying this: ”You (expletive) Americans. Who are you to tell us, the rest of the world, that we’re not going to deal with Iranians.” (There are U.S. sanctions on Iran.) The bank will take corrective measures to prevent this from happening again. (EDIT: As the WSJ’s Samuel Rubenfeld points out below, the deal does not preclude a settlement from federal regulatory bodies. That’ll happen separately.)
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Northeast US cleaning up after severe storms
A state of emergency and curfew remains in effect in Elmira, N.Y., as crews continue clearing trees and repairing power lines that were brought down by a possible tornado yesterday. At least 2 people have been killed after strong thunderstorms swept from Ohio into upstate New York. Read more from AP.
Photo: Jessica Stansfield poses for a photo below an enormous uprooted tree in Elmira, N.Y., after the town was hit by a possible tornado on July 26, 2012. (Adam Fenster / Reuters)
Over 100,000 people are reportedly without power.
Mindy Meyer: “I want to ultimately maybe one day run in the presidential elections.”
Web site or not, she doesn’t seem like she’s completely terrible at this. Note the way that she talks to potential constituents.
A shooting at a famed basketball court: Six people were treated for gunshot wounds last night after a gunman opened fire on a basketball court at Harlem’s famed Rucker Park. During a lull in the game, while players and coaches argued mid-court, a suspect in the crowd pulled a gun and opened fire. Six men were wounded, five on the court and one across the street, but all victims are expected to fully recover from their injuries. No word yet on a motive, and no arrests have been made at this time. (Photo via SportsGrid) source
Pretty sure this New York State Senate candidate is the first candidate to use an LMFAO song on their campaign page. Mindy Meyer, a Republican and the first Orthodox Jewish woman to run for a State Senate seat in New York, wants you to know one thing: “I can tell you one thing, I have no experience in corruption.” She has lots of experience in graphic design involving the color pink, however. (ht Gawker)
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