Recognizing Christopher Santangelo's 27 Years of Federal Law Enforcement Service

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Ms. MALLIOTAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record the following Proclamation recognizing Christopher Santangelo, President of the New York City Chapter of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association on his retirement after 27 years of federal law enforcement service on April 27, 2024.

Whereas Mr. Santangelo, who grew up in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn from childhood until his early 30s, is a product of a New York City Education. He graduated from Kingsborough Community College with an AAS degree in accounting, earned a BS in accounting from Brooklyn College, and obtained an MS from John Jay College.

Whereas Christopher Santangelo began his federal law enforcement career in January 1997 with the United States Park Police in Washington, D.C. where he was stationed to protect the White House in our nation's capital.

Whereas from mid-1998 to early 2000, Mr. Santangelo was assigned to the New York Field Division, where he led the JBU unit to numerous arrests, earning him the Officer of the Month award five times. Additionally, Mr. Santangelo was assigned to one or more NYPD narcotics task forces and served as a plainclothes officer with the U.S. Park Police in Operation Weed and Seed, covering areas in Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island.

Whereas in April 2000, Mr. Santangelo became a special agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms and was assigned to the New York Field Division, Group V--HIDTA. Mr. Santangelo survived the World Trade Center attacks and participated in the recovery efforts for several months. As a result of his unwavering dedication, Mr. Santangelo was awarded a commendation for meritorious service for his actions during the September 11, 2001, World Trade Center attacks and the subsequent evidence recovery.

Whereas after transferring to the U.S. Department of Agriculture in June 2002, Mr. Santangelo conducted investigations into fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement related to USDA programs and operations. Mr. Santangelo conducted or participated in hundreds of program crime investigations, including inquiries into the Food and Nutrition Service's (FNS) EBT program, violations of the Animal Welfare Act, violations of the Sherman Act, farm loan fraud, prohibited agricultural product smuggling, and agroterrorism. He also served as the anti-money laundering subject matter expert (SME) for the Northeast Region.

Whereas for his investigative excellence, Mr. Santangelo is a past award recipient of the Council of Inspectors General (CIGIE) Investigative Excellence Award for leading a multi- million-dollar civil investigation into the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Error Rate. Additionally, Mr. Santangelo received recognition from the NYPD Detective Endowment Association for his participation and assistance while being assigned part-time to the NYPD Counter Terrorism Bureau in Brooklyn, New York, from 2002 to 2005.

Whereas in February 2017, Mr. Santangelo transferred to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Office of Inspector General, New York Field Division, where he investigated failed banks and former members of the board of directors of failed banks. Mr. Santangelo successfully investigated global financial institutions for market manipulation in Foreign Currency (FX) trading, as well as in the High Yield Junk and Variable Rate bond markets. Additionally, Mr. Santangelo was the co-case agent in United States v. Rishi Shah, Shradha Agarwal, Brad Purdy, et al., in which the former executives were convicted in a $1 billion corporate fraud case, resulting in him receiving the Attorney General Award in January 2024.

Whereas in June 2022, Mr. Santangelo was promoted to the SSA position within the FDIC-OIG, New York Regional Office, which covers New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and all of New England while also serving as the lead SSA for investigations in the Eastern District of New York (encompassing Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, Nassau, and Suffolk Counties), leading or coordinating investigations into bank insiders, borrowers, and accountants suspected of committing bank, wire and elder fraud. Furthermore, Mr. Santangelo personally directed disaster relief and romance scam investigations in the Smithtown--Hauppauge--Kings Park area related to Hurricane Sandy, as well as investigations related to the CARES Act.

Whereas since 2009 Mr. Santangelo has served as the President of the New York Chapter of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, Vice President of the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation, and is a member of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 53.

Whereas our Nation is forever indebted to Christopher Santangelo and offers its sincerest gratitude and warmest wishes in his retirement.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source