Top investigators at the city’s school oversight agency stockpiled nearly 6,000 rounds of live ammunition and distributed the bullets among themselves in an alleged effort to conceal them, according to a bombshell lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges that the Special Commissioner of Investigation, an independent agency that examines misconduct claims involving the city Department of Education and its employees, stored more than 5,700 rounds of ammunition without a permit in a wooden cabinet at its Manhattan headquarters.
Filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, the case accuses SCI Commissioner Anastasia Coleman, along with the city Law Department, Conflict of Interest Board and Department of Investigation, of disregarding evidence of misconduct and covering up corruption.
The whistleblowers also claim SCI retaliated against employees who exposed the alleged wrongdoing by firing, suspending or forcing them out of the agency.
Former SCI technology investigator Roberto El Lakkis and computer systems manager Richard Marin filed the Article 78 petition, asking the court to compel the agencies to address what they describe as widespread corruption.
El Lakkis first alerted agency leaders to the ammunition problem in April 2023. According to the lawsuit, the bullets were kept in an unlocked cabinet in a room without a fire extinguisher, alongside batteries that created a serious fire risk. The allegations were first reported by Susan Edelman on Substack.
SCI’s Financial District building is also occupied by the private K-12 Quad Preparatory School.
SCI agents do not make arrests and generally are not authorized to carry firearms as part of their jobs, except for a small number of peace officers employed by the agency. Some other agents are former NYPD officers who may carry personal firearms and are responsible for those weapons themselves.
Marin told The Post that only three peace officers worked for SCI at the time.
New York City’s fire code requires a permit to store more than 200 rounds of ammunition. The lawsuit alleges that SCI had no such permit.
After receiving no response to his concerns, El Lakkis filed complaints with the FDNY and the city Law Department in November 2023.
During a subsequent inspection, officials could not access the cabinet in question. They were reportedly told that no more than 90 rounds were stored in the office.
The lawsuit alleges that SCI then began an effort to cover up the ammunition stockpile.
Emails filed with the court allegedly show SCI Gun Custodian Joseph Piwowarski distributing 114 boxes—containing 5,700 rounds—to nine investigators at the agency.
EXPLORE MORE: Rip-Off Rickshaw Drivers Forced to Sleep Rough in Their Cabs
Video submitted as evidence appears to show Piwowarski leaving the technology room carrying armloads of ammunition in a brown folder. Additional footage allegedly shows him handing a folder to an SCI agent wearing a green trench coat and carrying a brown leather briefcase elsewhere in the office.
According to emails submitted to the court, Piwowarski provided SCI Deputy Commissioner Daniel Schlachet and Chief Investigator Mike Bisogna with a detailed accounting of the number of ammunition boxes distributed and the brand each investigator received.
Photographs of the ammunition cabinet obtained by The Post show .9mm and .38-caliber rounds manufactured by brands including American Eagle and PMC Bronze.
SCI First Deputy Commissioner Daniel Schlachet told investigators that the ammunition was intended for the agency’s peace officers to use during annual state-mandated firearms training. He also said SCI would stop purchasing ammunition.
The plaintiffs allege that investigators were given the ammunition to take home so FDNY officials would not discover that they had been misled.
“You have liars working on investigations. The law department has all of this information and they still let them investigate wrongdoing in city schools,” Marin told The Post.
The plaintiffs faced retaliation by SCI, they claim in the court docs.
El Lakkis claimed he was fired as a result of speaking up, and Marin said he has been placed on suspension for reporting the ammo stash and other SCI misdeeds.
Ralph Gerard, a former vehicle fleet manager and witness in the case, also said he was forced out of his job for speaking up about SCI agents using city-provided EZ-Pass for personal use.
“If you’re not in their clique, they dismiss and ignore you, and if you speak up they retaliate against you, it’s a toxic place,” Gerard said.
The Law Department wound up clearing the agency in its investigation, but the trio’s lawyers alleged in their lawsuit the investigation was rigged.
An SCI spokesperson said the agency does not comment on active litigation.
Bisogna, Piwowarski and Anderson could not be reached for comment.
“The hoarding and distribution of ammunition by high-level officials within SCI and the cover-up that ensued were egregious violations of public trust,” plaintiff lawyer Michael Musa-Obregon said.
