ALBANY – Attorney General Andrew Cuomo – comparing his effort to the explosive Knapp Commission probe of New York City police corruption in 1970 – vowed yesterday to conduct a “purposeful and thorough” investigation of allegations that a renegade unit in the State Police engaged in political espionage.
“Combining politics and police work is a toxic brew,” said Cuomo, who in an unprecedented move was designated Monday night by Gov. Paterson to conduct a full-scale criminal investigation of the State Police.
“Any questions about political interference within the State Police are a serious concern,” continued Cuomo, whose appointment came just over a week after Paterson, who succeeded disgraced Gov. Eliot Spitzer on March 12, dismissed acting State Police Superintendent Preston Felton.
“There is no question that there has been a rising number of complaints, anecdotal evidence, about political interference in the State Police,” noted Cuomo.
“Our investigation will determine whether or not this has occurred within the State Police and, if so, to what extent.”
The attorney general said he was “looking at the Knapp Commission” and even some former commission members for guidance on how to probe a police department, noting, “These are difficult investigations to do and I want to reach out and do the research and get some people who have gone through this before.”
Cuomo said the probe, which he expects will last many months, would raise a range of questions, including whether the special State Police unit that guarded Spitzer had any knowledge of his patronizing prostitutes.
“We’re looking at everything,” Cuomo said when asked if Spitzer’s guard unit would be questioned about the prostitution scandal that brought him down.
Asked how Spitzer’s security could not have known about his association with prostitutes, Cuomo responded, “I don’t know. It’s a legitimate question.”
Cuomo’s probe is expected to focus on the shadowy role of former top State Police official Daniel Wiese, a friend of both Spitzer and former Gov. George Pataki who once headed Pataki’s security unit.
Current and former state officials, as well as Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno (R-Rensselaer) – targeted by Spitzer last summer in a plot that involved the State Police – have identified Wiese as a behind-the-scenes power within the State Police.
Paterson’s selection of Cuomo, first disclosed by The Post yesterday, came a day after the paper revealed that several state lawmakers had told Paterson that they believed they had been targeted for traffic stops and unspecified other harmful actions by the State Police.
Paterson, in a statement issued late in the day, said he had sought Cuomo’s probe from a “sincere desire to protect and defend the reputation of the State Police – an institution with a stellar tradition of bravery and excellence.”
fredric.dicker
@nypost.com