Man files false-arrest lawsuit against Buffalo
A Buffalo man, who was detained and questioned for hours about e-mails demanding the resignation of Mayor Byron W. Brown and his top deputy, has filed a lawsuit for false arrest and unlawful imprisonment, his attorney said Tuesday.
Syaed A. Ali, 24, is seeking the return of all the material seized from his home during that raid that began at about 7 a. m., Nov. 7, in addition to compensatory and punitive damages, according to his lawyer, David G. Jay.
Jay said copies of the State Supreme Court civil rights suit are being delivered to the City of Buffalo; Buffalo Police Detective Anna Mydlarz; and Michael G. McCartney, a computer expert with the state Attorney General’s Office.
Acting Buffalo Corporation Counsel David Rodriguez and spokesmen for the state Attorney General’s Office could not be reached to comment.
Ali, a Buffalo State College graduate who owns a small computer business, was never charged with any criminal offenses in connection with the raid on the Breckenridge Avenue home he shares with relatives. The raid stemmed from a series of e-mails demanding the resignations of Brown and his first deputy, Steven M. Casey.
Ali has said investigators filled 11 large bags with his family’s possessions and hauled them away, including Ali’s computers and records, his mother’s purse, business records belonging to his father and brother, and at least $750 in cash.
Jay said Ali was taken to the state Attorney General’s Office in the Main Place Tower by Mydlarz and McCartney and questioned for seven hours about the e-mails, which he denied sending.
Jay said Mydlarz and McCartney also pressed Ali about his alleged connections to political enemies of the mayor.
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