'Cannibal Cop' Accomplice Arrested in New Jersey

Last week, the FBI announced that it had arrested a suspect in connection with a cannibalism and kidnapping conspiracy centered in Forest Hills.

Hamilton, New Jersey resident Michael Vanhise was arrested at his home and charged with conspiracy to commit kidnapping, in connection with a larger conspiracy masterminded by a Forest Hills resident and NYPD officer.

Vanhise, 23, allegedly was prepared to pay Forest Hills police officer Gilberto Valle $5,000 to kidnap a victim, who lived in New Jersey, and deliver her alive. 

According to the criminal complaint, Vanhise e-mailed photos of his would-be victim to Valle and other co-conspirators, saying he wanted to make sure she was delivered bound, gagged and unconscious. He allegedly planned to rape her. 

In a release on Friday, the U.S. Attorney in Manhattan promised that the latest arrest would not be the last in connection with the grisly case.

“As alleged in the complaint, Michael Vanhise engaged in conduct that reads like a script for a bad horror film but fortunately, neither he nor his co-conspirators were able to act out the twisted conspiracies described in the complaint in real-life," said U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara. "His arrest today is the second in this bone-chilling case, but we are not finished.”

Valle, who was arrested in October, pleaded not guilty in November.