Beware what you say to that testy toll taker – he has a gun!
Last summer, a toll worker pulled his MTA Bridges and Tunnels-issued Glock 9mm pistol on a driver who handed him a wad of crumpled cash.
B&T Officer Daniel Bell, 38, was working toll booth No. 3 on the Queens side of the Queens Midtown Tunnel when a driver pulled up in a black Mercedes and handed him five one-dollar bills. Three of them were crumpled in the driver’s hand.
Bell refused to accept the cash, stating it was MTA policy, and told the driver he needed to straighten the bills himself.
The driver happened to be FBI agent Wilfred Rattigan, 48, on his way to a movie in Manhattan that evening of Aug. 4, 2007. His brother-in-law was in the passenger seat, and his fiancée and sister were in back.
In a heated exchange, Bell called Rattigan “dude” and Rattigan demanded to see Bell’s supervisor.
Bell, who had nine rudeness complaints lodged against him in his three years on the job, asked his boss to come settle the issue.
Rattigan, a 20-year FBI veteran and one of only two FBI agents stationed in Saudi Arabia on Sept. 11, 2001, then perfectly unfolded the bills to pay the $4.50 toll, according to videotaped evidence presented at an internal disciplinary hearing.
But Bell leaned back in his booth, again refusing to take any cash from Rattigan, and said he had to wait until his boss arrived.
The agent then reached under his seat and pulled a black bag onto his lap. Bell, 38, asked what was inside the bag, and Rattigan responded, “A weapon – and here is my identification,” according to hearing documents.
The toll collector then ordered Rattigan to take his hands out of the bag, but Rattigan continued to pull out his ID.
Bell drew his pistol and ordered everyone in the car to place their hands on the dashboard or the seat in front of them. B&T toll workers are peace officers and are armed with guns but do not have all the powers of a cop. There are no specific agency regulations detailing when they can draw their weapons.
Video shows Bell tossing Rattigan’s ID on the car’s roof. Within seconds, eight other officers surround the car and aim their guns.
Once his identity as an FBI agent was confirmed, Rattigan was sent on his way by the officers. The next day, he filed a complaint with MTA Bridges and Tunnels.
A city administrative law judge heard the case, and Bell was fired for starting the dispute.
Judge Alessandra Zorgniotti ruled that he was justified in drawing his gun because Rattigan had talked about getting his own firearm and refused to take his hands out of the bag.
But she also found no valid reason for Bell to refuse Rattigan’s toll money – and recommended that the agency fire him. The judge also noted the high number of rudeness complaints lodged against him.
At the department hearing, Bell argued that officers have been placed on heightened alert since 9/11 for anthrax and other toxins that might be hidden in folded money. But the judge noted this should not have been a concern because the video showed Agent Rattigan counting the bills with his bare hands.
Joe Mauro, president of the Bridge and Tunnel Officers Benevolent Association, said he was “shocked” by the decision, which is being appealed. “[Rattigan] was reaching for a firearm under the seat,” he said.
Rattigan, now based in an FBI office in Mississippi, filed a lawsuit against the FBI in 2004, claiming that the bureau discriminated against him after he converted to Islam and that it failed to provide him with the resources to investigate terrorism properly after 9/11.
rblau@nypost.com