Overview
- A federal indictment unsealed Feb. 12 charged Kevin Taylor and SaferWatch CEO Geno Roefaro; both were arrested, Taylor pleaded not guilty and was released on a $600,000 bond, and each faces up to 20 years if convicted.
- Prosecutors allege Roefaro provided roughly $70,000 in cash and luxury perks to Taylor, including a Las Vegas helicopter tour with a themed dinner, a Bahamas trip with airfare and high-end meals, hotel stays, and Broadway tickets.
- The indictment says Taylor arranged a no-bid $19,830 pilot for SaferWatch in September 2023 and pressed to expand it into an approximately $11 million NYPD contract after touting the app to the City Council, but a planned 2024 announcement was canceled.
- Reporting and court records describe SaferWatch hiring a consultant tied to Terence Banks that led to meetings with Philip and David Banks, and investigators seized phones and other devices from officials as part of the probe and subpoenaed SaferWatch.
- Taylor is also accused of attempting to extort other vendors, including a $75,000 demand tied to a bulletproof vest supplier, as the U.S. Attorney, FBI and NYPD emphasized that the city’s procurement process is not for sale.