Opinion
March 8, 1993
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Queens County (Dufficy, J.).
Ordered that the judgment is affirmed.
The defendant was arrested a few minutes after a buy-and-bust operation in which an undercover police officer purchased, using prerecorded money, two vials of crack cocaine from the defendant. However, no drugs or prerecorded money were recovered. The defendant was convicted of criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree.
On appeal, the defendant argues that he was merely an innocent bystander, not the seller, of the crack cocaine. However, the defendant has failed to preserve for appellate review the issue of the legal sufficiency of the evidence (see, CPL 470.05; People v. Udzinski, 146 A.D.2d 245). In any event, contrary to the defendant's contentions, the evidence was legally sufficient to support his identification as the seller beyond a reasonable doubt (see, People v. Perry, 159 A.D.2d 593; People v. Bowden, 156 A.D.2d 372). That neither drugs nor prerecorded money was recovered is not dispositive (see, People Vickers, 177 A.D.2d 608; People v. Griffith, 171 A.D.2d 678). Moreover, upon the exercise of our factual review power, we are satisfied that the verdict was not against the weight of the evidence (see, CPL 470.15). Balletta, J.P., Rosenblatt, Ritter and Santucci, JJ., concur.