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According to LoHud, Edwin Vargas, 42, accessed nearly four dozen personal email accounts between March 2011 and October 2012. He allegedly obtained credentials online by paying more than $4,000 to an online email hacking service.
Vargas was arrested in Bronxville on Tuesday morning and is set to be arraigned in the afternoon in U.S. District Court in Manhattan on one count of computer hacking and one count of conspiracy to commit computer hacking. Both charges carry a maximum sentence of one year in federal prison if convicted.
Currently, no motive has been given for Vargas’ hacking. He was taken into custody following the seizure of his work hard drive last week, which led to an overwhelming amount of evidence against him, police said.
U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara added that Vargas also stands accused of improperly using the National Crime Information Center database to illegally obtain information on two officers. That database is regularly used by police officials to check the backgrounds of suspects.
“As alleged, Detective Edwin Vargas paid thousands of dollars for the ability to illegally invade the privacy of his fellow officers and others,” he said. “When law enforcement officers break the laws they are sworn to uphold, they do a disservice to their fellow officers, to their department and to the public they serve. “
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