A Queens man overheard discussing plans “to kill another cop … before Christmas” is in police custody today. Elvin Payamps, 38, who was overhead talking on his cell phone inside a Queens bank, also shared his view that the next victim should be “white — for maximum impact.”
After overhearing the twisted rant, another customer, 54-year-old Charles Otero, phoned 911. By the time police arrived, Payamps was gone. But they radioed out a description of the suspect and he was pulled over a short time later. Cops found a bag of marijuana on his front seat, providing sufficient cause for an arrest. Later, a search of Payamps’s home turned up a weapons cache, including two firearms — a Jimenez Arms semiautomatic pistol, holstered and loaded with eight bullets, and a black Mossberg Maverick 12-gauge shotgun with its serial number and other identifying information rubbed off.
Cops also seized brass knuckles and a pair of bulletproof vests, police said. One of the vests was labeled “BKDC” — an acronym for Brooklyn Detention Center. That vest may have been stolen from a retired correction officer.
Payamps was arraigned Thursday on charges that include weapon and pot possession, aggravated harassment, and criminal impersonation. Said prosecutor Talia Seidel, “He was one step away from making good on his word.” She asked that bail be set at $1 million.
