Former NYPD Officer And Accident Victim Call Center Owner Both Plead Guilty To Bribery Scheme

Jay Clayton, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York; Michael Alfonso, the Acting Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”); and Christopher G. Raia, the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (“FBI”), announced that SUZETTE TRIMMINGHAM, a former New York City Police Department (“NYPD”) traffic safety officer, and MERVIN RHYMES, the owner and operator of an accident victim call center, both pled guilty to participating in a bribery scheme.  Specifically, TRIMMINGHAM and RHYMES admitted to participating in a scheme in which TRIMMINGHAM provided information of automobile accident victims contained in a non-public NYPD database to RHYMES in exchange for bribes of money and other things of value.  TRIMMINGHAM pled guilty yesterday before U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl, and RHYMES pled guilty today before U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams.

“Suzette Trimmingham abused her position as an NYPD traffic safety officer and, in exchange for bribes, sent Mervin Rhymes information about automobile accident victims so that Rhymes’s call center could profit by referring those victims to lawyers and doctors,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton.  “Trimmingham and Rhymes made hundreds of thousands of dollars from their scheme.  Their pleas highlight this Office’s commitment to pursuing those, including members of law enforcement, who seek to profit by abusing their positions of public trust.”

HSI New York Acting Special Agent in Charge Michael Alfonso said: “Suzette Trimmingham exploited her position of public trust and in turn profited handsomely, alongside her domestic partner Mervin Rhymes, by targeting victims of recent vehicle accidents.  Whether at work, off-duty and even on vacation, she took steps to access individuals’ personal details from non-public government databases, and then shared with Rhymes that private, sensitive information so they could further enrich their lifestyle.  HSI New York, alongside the FBI and the NYPD, will always place the public’s wellbeing above all else, and will relentlessly pursue bad actors willing to shamelessly betray their sworn duties for their own selfish gains.”          

FBI Assistant Director in Charge Christopher G. Raia said: “Suzette Trimmingham, a former NYPD traffic safety officer, abused her position by providing Mervin Rhymes with non-public personal details of automobile accident victims.  The defendants prioritized personal greed over safeguarding sensitive victim data.  The FBI will never permit any individual, especially a public servant, to share confidential information in exchange for financial incentives.”

According to the allegations contained in the Informations, court records, and statements made in Court: 

From at least in or about January 2020 through at least in or about June 2024, while at work as an NYPD traffic safety officer, TRIMMINGHAM reviewed police accident reports (“PARs”), which contained the personally identifiable information of automobile accident victims, for NYPD precincts that were not part of her law enforcement duties.  At times, TRIMMINGHAM also reviewed PARs while she was off duty and while on vacation.  TRIMMINGHAM then provided the personally identifiable information of accident victims to RHYMES.  For example, in or about April 2024, while at work, TRIMMINGHAM reviewed PARs and copied and pasted into a Word document the names and phone numbers of automobile accident victims mentioned in the PARs.  That same month, TRIMMINGHAM sent RHYMES dozens of images of documents, each containing dozens of names and phone numbers of automobile accident victims.

RHYMES paid bribes to TRIMMINGHAM in exchange for her providing the personally identifiable information of automobile accident victims to him.  For example, on or about January 18, 2021, TRIMMINGHAM told RHYMES, in sum and substance, that she had sent him PARs and that RHYMES was supposed to pay TRIMMINGHAM for the PARs.  In response, RHYMES told TRIMMINGHAM that he had paid TRIMMINGHAM for the PARs a few days earlier.  TRIMMINGHAM and RHYMES made at least $900,000 from the scheme.

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TRIMMINGHAM, 54, and RHYMES, 61, both of Queens, New York, each pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit federal program bribery, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.  TRIMMINGHAM is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Koeltl on October 8, 2025, at 4:30 p.m., and RHYMES is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Abrams on October 8, 2025, at 11:30 a.m.  

The maximum potential sentence in this case is prescribed by Congress and provided here for informational purposes only, as the sentencing of the defendants will be determined by the judges. 

Mr. Clayton praised the outstanding investigative work of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Homeland Security Investigations.  Mr. Clayton also thanked the NYPD for its assistance.            

The case is being handled by the Office’s Public Corruption Unit.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Connie L. Dang and Rebecca T. Dell are in charge of the prosecution.