Valhalla, NY – ER Worker Charged With Stealing From Plane Crash Victim

Valhalla, NY – A patient care technician at Westchester Medical Center and his girlfriend were arrested Tuesday on grand larceny and other charges for allegedly going on a spending spree with a credit card the tech allegedly stole from a mortally injured plane crash victim.

Daniel Bisk, 53, of Pleasantville was brought by helicopter to WMC on November 22, 2009 after the small plane he was in crashed in a wooded area near Dutchess County Airport in Wappinger.

The pilot, an Israeli army vet Amir Tirosh, 52, of Bedford Hills, died on impact.

While medical staff worked on Bisk in an attempt to save his live, patient care tech Anthony Vassell, 33, stolen his credit cards and later went on a high-end spending spree with his girlfriend, Lisa Dacosta, 29. They both live at 140 Elgar Place in the Co-op City section of the Bronx.

Bisk died from his injuries days later on December 1.

Westchester Police allege that Vassell stole the credit cards and went on a buying binge purchasing clothes at Armani Exchange and Bloomingdales, a laptop computer at Best Buy, and jewelry, liquor, food and gasoline at other stores.

Both Vassell and Dacosta were arrested Tuesday. They were charged on multiple felony and misdemeanor charges, including grand larceny, identity theft, unlawful possession of personal identification information, forgery and petit larceny.

“While doctors and other medical personnel were making heroic efforts to keep Mr. Bisk alive, one employee used the tragedy as an opportunity to steal,” said Public Safety Commissioner George Longworth.

Longworth said the November theft was not the first time Vassell victimized a patient at the ER. County police also determined during the investigation that Vassell was responsible for an October 2009 theft of a credit card from another patient at the ER.