PAIN USED AS TERROR WEAPON

Colonie Police Report Says 2 Suspects Tortured Man in Bid to Silence
Him

COLONIE -- A man facing drug charges allegedly teamed with second
person to torture a state witness -- searing his face with a glowing
hot fork -- in an attempt to get him to admit he cooperated with
police. The two men -- Shawn K. Roberts, 28, and Ian A. Greene, 22,
both of Watervliet -- are charged with witness tampering, assault and
robbery in the Jan. 24 incident that local officials say represents a
brutal example of witness intimidation.

It also highlights a dilemma for authorities determined to eradicate
the anti-snitching culture by exposing it as hollow and
destructive.

While prosecutors and police want to bring such cases to the public,
they are hesitant to discuss specific instances in detail for fear of
compromising cases, violating grand jury secrecy or perpetuating the
terror they aim to stop.

Sometimes events turn deadly.

In 2003, 31-year-old Christopher Drabik was murdered in Troy just days
before he was scheduled to testify as a police informant against a
drug dealer in Albany County Court.

In the latest case, Colonie police arrest reports reveal Roberts and
Greene allegedly flashed a pistol and stole their victim's
blood-stained clothing after using the hot fork to scald his ear and
neck so badly that witnesses reported hearing his skin sizzle.

Heather Orth, a spokeswoman for District Attorney David Soares said
that protecting witnesses is the "single most important subject for
prosecutors."

Soares praised Gov. Eliot Spitzer for recently pledging $500,000 to
establish a state-level witness protection program.

The Times Union has withheld the 47-year-old victim's name at the
request of authorities, who remain concerned about his safety. Roberts
and Greene appeared in town court and were ordered held without bail
at the Albany County jail.

In his statement to detectives, the victim acknowledged working with
police and having purchased crack cocaine from Roberts in the past.

Colonie Detective Lt. John Van Alstyne declined to comment on the
relationship among the three men other than to say that they knew one
another. The Albany County District Attorney's Office also declined to
comment on the motive for the alleged assault.

But the goal, according to court papers outlining the charges, was "to
compel and prevent the victim from testifying in a criminal proceeding
that was pending in Albany County Court."

Court records also show the attack occurred after Roberts convinced
another man -- one of his alleged crack cocaine customers -- to lure
the victim to an apartment in the far eastern end of town, where
Roberts and Greene eventually showed up carrying alcohol, including a
12-pack of beer.

The mood in the apartment turned when Roberts allegedly began
questioning the victim about "setting him up," according to one
witness' accounts.

The suspects asked if he'd worn a recording device and whether he'd
testified before a grand jury. It was during this roughly hour-long
interrogation that Greene, referred to only as "E," allegedly
disappeared into the kitchen and returned with a hot fork, searing the
victim's ear and neck.

According to one account, Greene threatened the victim again with a
hot spatula, pleading with Roberts to let him burn him again, while
Roberts allegedly tried to coax answers with offers of money and a
wrist watch.

At one point, Roberts -- referred to only as "Jay" in witness accounts
- -- allegedly told Greene to retrieve something from their car. When
Greene returned he flashed the handle of a pistol tucked in his
waistband, the victim told police.

The defendants then forced the victim to change clothes and wash blood
off himself before saying they would give him a ride home, according
to the victim's account.

As they approached the two suspects' car, the victim bolted to a
nearby gas station, where he called police. He was treated at Albany
Memorial Hospital for burns and cuts, but his injuries were not
considered serious.