NYPD Rat Squad Activated: Luthmann filed a complaint against 120 Detectives.
A formal complaint filed Monday with the NYPD’s Internal Affairs Bureau (IAB) accuses Supervising Detective Sergeant (SDS) Peter McGovern, Detective John Wilkinson, and Detective Daniel Castillo of misconduct and falsifying police records.
Essentially, it means that the person named on the I Card is “wanted” by the police. Here, it’s Luthmann, who further expects a McMahon-linked judge to sign a baseless felony arrest warrant against him.
The IAB and the NYPD Inspector General have been asked to investigate the detectives for “weaponized justice” – turning law enforcement into a tool of political revenge.
Luthmann’s complaint paints a damning picture of dishonesty and fraud. It alleges McGovern and his squad concocted a phony case file to make the DA appear under threat when he wasn’t.
Audio Reveals Boasts of Judicial Favors and Heavy-Handed Tactics
A secret audio recording is at the heart of the Internal Affairs probe. In a July 21 phone call recorded by Luthmann’s attorney, Detective Wilkinson candidly admitted politics, not public safety, drove the case.
Wilkinson said he was pursuing the arrest warrant “because of who the victim is” – namely, DA McMahon. He boasted he could “get anything [he] wanted from a Staten Island judge”, suggesting courts would rubber-stamp warrants whenever a sitting district attorney claims fear for his life.
Wilkinson even threatened to “get the U.S. Marshal to pick up” Luthmann in Florida. In other words, he planned to have federal agents haul the journalist back to New York in handcuffs.
Luthmann is an Altar Server at his local Roman Catholic Church.
Such swaggering statements, now preserved on tape, point to clear abuse of power, Luthmann says. The detective’s own words imply the team knew a judge’s sign-off was a mere formality given McMahon’s status.
“It collapses independent probable cause and shows improper political influence in what should have been an impartial investigation,” Luthmann wrote in his complaint.
The recorded call is being treated as exculpatory evidence, meaning it could clear Luthmann by revealing the retaliatory motive behind the case. It also raises the specter of judge-shopping and undue pressure on the courts.
If a warrant was issued on the DA’s say-so rather than facts, that’s a profound corruption of due process.
Luthmann maintains he never even received the protective order he’s accused of violating. Under New York law, you can’t violate an order you weren’t properly served – a basic requirement for a contempt charge.
The complaint suggests Wilkinson has no proof Luthmann was ever served, calling the order’s legitimacy into question.
In short, the journalist contends the entire case was a house of cards: no service, no threat, no crime – just a DA using police as personal enforcers. Internal Affairs is now investigating whether that house of cards was deliberately stacked.
False Police Report and “Fear Fraud” Exposed
The NYPD complaint report at the center of this firestorm appears riddled with falsehoods. Detective Castillo entered the official report (known as a “61”) and Sgt. McGovern approved it.
Luthmann NYPD Report 1
Luthmann NYPD Report 2
Luthmann NYPD Report 3
According to Luthmann’s Internal Affairs filing, their report falsified key details to make the DA’s complaint seem credible.
One glaring example: the report claims Luthmann “knowingly disobeyed a valid order of protection by electronic means via email” sent to McMahon.
In reality, that “email” was just a newsletter blast about an unrelated legal topic, authored by a third party (world-renowned psychiatrist Dr. Bandy Lee) and mass-distributed through Substack.
The email from Dr. Bandy Lee that triggered Mike McMahon’s “Fear Fraud.”
Luthmann never personally emailed McMahon; McMahon had voluntarily subscribed to the newsletter and had been reading it for weeks.
The email did not mention McMahon whatsoever. Calling it a direct, knowing violation is “demonstrably false,” Luthmann says.
Another section of the police report labeled the journalist as a “stranger” to the DA. That raised eyebrows, since the two men have a well-documented history of bad blood.
Far from strangers, Luthmann and McMahon have been adversaries for a decade. Back in 2015, Luthmann – then a Staten Island attorney and political operative – helped publicly expose actual fraud in McMahon’s campaign ballot access petitions, famously revealing dead people’s names among McMahon’s signature sheets.
He also ran a satirical Facebook page mocking McMahon’s political cronies as the “Irish Mafia.”
Luthmann’s “McMahon Organizational Chart”
In 2017, Luthmann helped expose a court corruption scandal involving McMahon’s wife, Judge Judy McMahon, which led to her demotion.
The feud continued with a legal prosecution against Luthmann in 2018.
All of this was well known – yet the cops handling McMahon’s new complaint pretended none of it existed.
By marking Luthmann as a random “stranger,” they bolstered McMahon’s portrayal of the Substack email as something terrifying out of the blue.
Observers say this was a blatant lie to mislead any judge reviewing the warrant.
“It appears McMahon lied in a sworn NYPD complaint, and his underlings helped,” one critic noted, calling the saga a “Felony Free Speech” scandal.
Luthmann’s filing even raises alarm that court documents might be doctored to cover the tracks of this alleged setup.
Unlike Manhattan, Brooklyn, and federal criminal courts, Staten Island courts lack a public e-docket system for criminal matters. There is no way for the public to access and ascertain whether the order was properly served on Luthmann, who had never appeared before a New York State Supreme Court Justice.
Luthmann fears that officials could “post-date or fabricate” a protective order return of service to cover up the flimsy case.
“I said it in 2015 when McMahon first announced his D.A. run. He had no experience in a courtroom or as a prosecutor, nor as a criminal defense attorney. Now, ten years later, Staten Island still has the same paper filing system as they had in the 1850s Alabama. I was right then, and this case—my case—proves the point that I’m still right. Mike McMahon is a POLITICAL HACK,” Luthmann says. “If you’re looking for Justice from the McMahons, you won’t find it in a thousand years.”
Such is the level of distrust that this episode has generated. The picture painted is of a conspiracy of retaliation: a powerful DA, embarrassed by a crusading journalist, allegedly marshaling willing officers to twist the law and silence a critic.
Luthmann’s Complaint
Here is a copy of Luthmann’s complaint:
RICHARD LUTHMANN 4199 Los Altos Court Naples, FL 34109 (239) 631-5957 Richard.Luthmann@protonmail.com
July 28, 2025
From: Richard Luthmann <richard.luthmann@protonmail.com> Date: On Monday, July 28th, 2025 at 8:36 AM Subject: Formal Complaint and Referral: WEAPONIZED JUSTICE: Misconduct, Corruption, and Falsification of Police Records in Retaliatory Prosecution of Journalist Richard Luthmann To: IAB@NYPD.org <IAB@NYPD.org>, NYPDIG@doi.nyc.gov <NYPDIG@doi.nyc.gov>, robert.adams@nypd.org <robert.adams@nypd.org>, 120pctdvo@nypd.org <120pctdvo@nypd.org>, 120pctyco@nypd.org <120pctyco@nypd.org>
RICHARD LUTHMANN 4199 Los Altos Court Naples, FL 34109 (239) 631-5957 Richard.Luthmann@protonmail.com
July 28, 2025
Via Certified Mail and Email
NYPD Internal Affairs Bureau 315 Hudson Street New York, NY 10013 IAB@NYPD.org
Office of the Inspector General for the NYPD Department of Investigation 180 Maiden Lane New York, NY 10038 NYPDIG@doi.nyc.gov
FORMAL COMPLAINT AND REFERRAL Against NYPD SDS Peter McGovern, Det. John Wilkinson, and Det. Daniel Castillo
I. INTRODUCTION This is a formal complaint and referral requesting immediate investigation into the actions of Supervising Detective Sergeant Peter McGovern, Detective John Wilkinson, and Detective Daniel Castillo of the NYPD’s 120th Precinct Warrant Squad, Richmond County, for their involvement in a politically motivated and factually baseless felony arrest warrant procured against me, Richard Luthmann, a Florida-based investigative journalist and known political critic of Staten Island District Attorney Michael E. McMahon.
II. EXCULPATORY AUDIO RECORDING – JULY 21, 2025 Attorney Lawrence Almagno (401-255-8201 / la@almagno-law.com) recorded a phone call with Det. Wilkinson on July 21, 2025. During that call, Det. Wilkinson made the following statements:
He was pursuing the warrant “because of who the victim is”—District Attorney McMahon.
He could “get anything [he] wanted” from a Staten Island judge.
He would “get the U.S. Marshal to pick up Luthmann.”
This audio, which Almagno played for me and another attorney-witness on July 24, 2025, demonstrates a retaliatory motive, the collapse of independent probable cause, and improper political influence in what should have been an impartial investigation. Almagno maintains possession of the full audio. It is exculpatory within the meaning of Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963).
III. FALSE STATEMENTS IN NYPD 61 REPORT – COMPLAINT #2025-120-006454
The official complaint report was entered by Det. Daniel Castillo and approved by SDS Peter McGovern. It contains demonstrably false and misleading information:
1. False Claim of Protective Order Violation via Email:
“RICHARD LUTHMANN KNOWINGLY DISOBEYED A VALID ORDER OF PROTECTION BY ELECTRONIC MEANS VIA EMAIL TO THE HONORABLE MICHAEL MCMAHON (MICHAEL.MCMAHON@RCDA.NYC.GOV) FROM (LUTHMANN@SUBSTACK.COM).”
This is false. The cited “email” was a mass-distributed Substack newsletter sent to McMahon’s official government email address. I did not send this email directly, and it contained no mention of McMahon. He subscribed voluntarily and had been receiving these newsletters for weeks.
Again, in 2017, I was responsible for exposing corruption that led to the dismissal of his wife, Judy McMahon, as Staten Island’s Administrative Judge:
The NYC Department of Investigation has requested my coverage on Islamophobia and Workplace Discrimination related to McMahon ally, NYC Councilmember Kamillah Hanks, berated Muslim staff, relatiated against workers, and who has staff drive her to personal appointments like the nail salon:
3. Lack of Proof of Service: Wilkinson has never produced proof that I was served with the Order of Protection, and I deny the actuality, legality, and sufficiency of the service—a required element of the crime charged under PL § 215.51. Without this, there is no legal basis for criminal contempt. Luthmann was never present in the New York State Supreme Court nor in the custody of the New York State authorities to take the plea or receive his sentence, which are legal nullities and a mode of proceeding error. As reported by the Staten Island Advance (https://www.silive.com/crime/2020/10/defeated-trial-by-combat-lawyer-admits-guilt-in-fake-facebook-page-case.html): “He appeared remotely from prison for the hearing, which was held in state Supreme Court, St. George. It marked the first virtual appearance in a New York state court proceeding by an incarcerated defendant in federal custody, said a source. And in a way it was surreal.”
4. RISK OF FABRICATED COURT RECORDS
Staten Island’s Supreme Court lacks a public electronic docket system. Given Det. Wilkinson’s statement that the team could “get whatever they want,” there is a real concern that court documents—including the alleged protective order—may be post-dated or fabricated to paper over the illegitimacy of the charge.
NYPD Rat Squad Activated: Judge Judy McMahonand Judge Ray Rodriguez
Additionally, I am concerned about what Raymond Rodriguez’s, the Chief Administrative Judge for Staten Island, role is in all of this. He is up for re-election this year, but he is holding “Star Chamber” and unnoticeable hearings in my case.
Attorney Arthur Aidala was dismissed from my case by Judge Donald Leo’s Supreme Court order years ago.
High-profile NYC Criminal Defense Attorney Arthur Aidala represented Richard Luthmann.
Yet, the Court is proceeding against me without notice. I believe there is mischief afoot.
5. CONFLICT OF INTEREST AND ABUSE OF PROCESS
DA McMahon acted not in his prosecutorial capacity but as a private complainant, while continuing to exercise influence over NYPD personnel. That dual role—as accuser and prosecutorial gatekeeper—corrupted the process. SDS McGovern and Det. Wilkinson facilitated this abuse, acting on political orders rather than independent police judgment.
6. MEDIA COVERAGE AND IMPLICATIONS FOR FREE SPEECH
This story is not going away. I am an established journalist, commentator, and editor of multiple platforms, including:
Multiple national outlets have already covered this story, raising alarms about political lawfare and the weaponization of protective orders against journalists, and more will:
Staten Island DA Says He Fears for His Safety Because of Email Sent on Substack, Frank Report, July 25, 2025
I request that Internal Affairs and the Office of the Inspector General:
Open a formal investigation into SDS McGovern, Det. Wilkinson, and Det. Castillo.
Audit Complaint Report #2025-120-006454 for falsification, fabrication, and false swearing.
Recover and review the July 21, 2025 Almagno audio recording.
Refer all findings of abuse of authority or political retaliation to appropriate prosecutorial and disciplinary bodies.
Issue public findings, if appropriate, to restore institutional integrity and public confidence.
8. SUPPORTING MATERIALS
Upon request, I am prepared to provide:
Sworn affidavit(s);
Transcripts and metadata;
Relevant Substack publications and podcasts;
Expert affidavits on press freedom and retaliation;
Court filings from related federal litigation, once ripe.
Please confirm receipt of this complaint and notify me of the investigation docket number.
Respectfully,
Richard Luthmann Writer, Journalist, and Commentator
Necessary Oversight or “Rat Squad” Overreach?
For many street cops, Internal Affairs is derided as the “rat squad” – snitches policing their own. But even hardened NYPD veterans might cringe at the allegations coming out of Staten Island.
NYPD Rat Squad Activated: Big Mama
The Luthmann affair is a textbook example of why the police need to be policed, some observers say. If a DA and his detective squad truly conspired to cook up charges against a journalist, it validates every fear of weaponized law enforcement.
“Staten Island’s top prosecutor filed a police report against a journalist, then had a subordinate cop type up charges, and is looking for a crony judge to rubber-stamp it with no oversight,” Luthmann said, describing the scheme. “McMahon is acting as judge, jury, victim, and executioner. If that doesn’t terrify you, it should.”
Those fiery words echo through New York’s halls of power as the case gains attention. Even First Amendment advocates warn that if a DA can haul off a reporter over critical newsletters and Facebook posts, free speech itself is under attack.
NYPD Rat Squad Activated: DA McMahon’s Detectives must be fully investigated.
“If a DA can arrest you for criticizing him in opinion columns or on Facebook, we don’t have a First Amendment anymore,” one Staten Island attorney warned.
Now the spotlight shifts to the NYPD’s watchdogs. Luthmann’s complaint demands that Internal Affairs and the Inspector General audit the entire case file for fraud and haul in the July 21 audio recording as evidence. It asks that any findings of abuse or political retaliation be referred for prosecution and public exposure.
In other words, the journalist wants the rat squad to do what it was designed to do: sniff out dirty cops and hold them accountable.
While cops might resent Internal Affairs, this case underscores why the unit exists. No one — not even a DA—is above the law, and police officers are sworn to uphold the law, not a particular politician. If McGovern, Wilkinson, and Castillo really bent the rules at McMahon’s bidding, as alleged, they may soon find themselves answering hard questions from investigators.
“SDS McGovern and Det. Wilkinson facilitated this abuse, acting on political orders rather than independent police judgment,” Luthmann’s complaint asserts bluntly.
Ultimately, shedding light on this alleged law enforcement vendetta could validate the unpopular but critical role of Internal Affairs.
The IAB inquiry is underway, and all eyes are on Staten Island’s “fear fraud” fiasco to see if justice will be unweaponized and restored.
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