NYPD Officer Accused of Stealing Safe, Then Using Department Databases for Investigation Updates
Authorities allege Officer Luis Triunfel stole $50,000 in jewelry and cash from a friend's apartment and later accessed police systems to monitor the case.
A New York Police Department officer has been arrested and accused of stealing a safe containing approximately $50,000 worth of jewelry and cash from a friend's apartment. Authorities also allege that Officer Luis Triunfel, 33, subsequently used NYPD databases to track the investigation into the theft.
The alleged incident occurred around 12:15 a.m. on August 31, when Triunfel reportedly entered his childhood friend's first-floor apartment on Boynton Avenue in the Bronx. According to a criminal court complaint, he took a shopping cart containing a single black metallic safe with a key lock.
The stolen safe reportedly contained about $9,500 in cash, $38,500 in gold jewelry, the victim's passport, car titles, U.S. permanent residency card, and social security card. Later on the same day as the alleged burglary, Triunfel returned to the apartment and is accused of damaging the video surveillance system that captured the crime.
Prosecutors stated that the day before the burglary, Triunfel used his department-issued cell phone to conduct a license plate search of the victim. On September 3 and September 7, he allegedly accessed the NYPD database to look up the report filed for the heist. On September 9, he reportedly searched the database for his own name.
Triunfel was arrested on the night of September 9. He faces charges including burglary, grand larceny, tampering with physical evidence, and computer trespass. He was released on his own recognizance during his arraignment and ordered to surrender his passport. Assigned to the NYPD's 28th Precinct, Triunfel joined the force in May 2024. He has been suspended without pay, according to the department.