Man on Moped Arrested by New York State Police in Mount Vernon
You know I got to be honest, I didn't even know that mopeds were even still a thing. Obviously we see cars, trucks, buses, etc rolling up and down our streets everyday and there's probably a good chance you'll see someone riding a bike or just walking to get where they need to go. That being said I've never seen anyone actually riding a moped.
Enter the New York State Police who last week made some news following a traffic stop in Mount Vernon. Now please indulge me, as now we're going to act like the title doesn't give away the punch line here when saying that, the NYSP stopped a man on a moped.
Moped Man Stopped in Mount Vernon
According to the official press release from the New York State Police, the incident in question happened on September 19, 2023. Around 2pm, state police officers stopped a man on a moped in the city of Mount Vernon as the moped was apparently unregistered.
The traffic stop was conducted on 7th Avenue and after discovering that the moped was unregistered, state police officers began to further investigate the situation. That is precisely when the Troopers on scene made the real find.
Troopers discovered that the operator of the moped, identified as 45 year old, Ricky S. Riggins, also of Mount Vernon, was in possession of multiple controlled substances. Troopers found Riggins to be...
in possession of approximately 5.6 grams of crack cocaine and 11 grams of phencyclidine (PCP).
Moped Man Charged and Arrested
Following the find, Troopers on scene arrested Riggins and took him into custody. Riggins was then taken into custody and was present for arraignment in Mount Vernon Court, where afterward he was remanded to Westchester County Jail without bail.
Officially, Riggins has been charged with Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the 3rd Degree with intent to sell, which is a class B felony charge. In addition, Riggins was also charged with Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance in the 4th and 5th degree as well.
The potential penalty for the 3rd degree felony charge of possession can potentially be up to 25 years in prison depending on whether or not the individual is found guilty or if the individual in question has a prior criminal history. WIth no criminal history, the minimum sentence could be up to 5 years, while the minimum with a criminal history could make the minimum sentence 10 years. One may also be required to pay a $30,000 fine.
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The remaining possession charges are also considered felony charges but less severe than the 3rd degree charge. That being said, the potential penalties for those crimes are also severe. Both the 4th and 5th degree charge could potentially put an individual behind bars for over a decade, with the potential for expensive fines as well as probation. Like the 3rd degree charge, these charges also take prior criminal history or lack thereof into consideration before sentencing.
Currently there is no other news about when Riggins is expected to be back in court.