SAYVILLE, NY — A Suffolk County Police officer has been arrested and charged with forcing a woman under arrest to perform oral sex twice in the precinct, federal prosecutors said.
Christopher McCoy, 38, of Sayville was charged with “depriving an arrestee of the right to bodily integrity by forcing her to perform a sexual act in the precinct,” according to a civil rights complaint filed with the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York, which was unsealed Thursday in federal court in Central Islip.
McCoy was arrested Thursday morning and was scheduled to appear Thursday afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Anne Y. Shields. The charge was announced by Bridget M. Rohde, acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and William F. Sweeney, Jr., assistant director-in-charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office, according to a release from the N.Y. State Department of Justice.
“Law enforcement officials are duty-bound to uphold the Constitution and protect all of our citizens, and certainly not to abuse them,” Rohde said. “No dereliction of this duty will be tolerated.”
Rohde thanked the Suffolk County Police Department for its assistance during the investigation.
“While in custody, this woman didn’t deserve to be allegedly abused and degraded by a sworn public servant,” Sweeney added. “Police officers are held to a high standard, as they should be, and they certainly don’t have the authority to disrespect any human being. This type of conduct threatens the reputation of the vast majority of law enforcement officials who serve each day with honor and integrity.”
According to the complaint, on March 16, 2017, while on duty, McCoy arrested Jane Doe1 — a pseudonym — who allegedly had several outstanding warrants in connection with unresolved vehicle and traffic offenses.
The woman, reportedly in her mid-30s, was transported to the First Precinct in Wyandanch, where, during arrest processing, while McCoy and Jane Doe were alone in the precinct’s juvenile room, McCoy forced Jane Doe to perform oral sex, the complaint states.
Upon her release, she promptly reported the incident.
According to the complaint, McCoy took the woman to an isolated room, closed the door, and “unzipped his pants,” urging her to perform oral sex; she “attempted to rise back up but . . .McCoy held her in position” and forced her to have oral sex. Someone walked by the door to the room and he zipped up his pants, the complaint states.
Later that day, the woman was brought back to the room by McCoy and his partner, the court document says.
He exposed himself, “grabbed her by the jaw, and said. . .’Let’s go. Don’t make this hard,'” then forced her to have oral sex, “ejaculating into her mouth.” The incident caused her pain because she had recently had oral surgery to extract teeth, the court documents said.
Get free real-time news alerts from the Sachem Patch.
By clicking “Subscribe”, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
The incident was followed by text messages from McCoy to the woman, the complaint stated.
On April 16, the FBI interviewed McCoy, who initially denied any sexual contact with the woman, according to the complaint. However, when FBI agents told him they were there to swab his cheek and collect a DNA sample, “McCoy admitted that he engaged in oral sex with Jane Doe,” the complaint said.
Finally, the shirt that she was wearing the night of the incident was examined by a forensic examiner at the FBI laboratory in Quantico, Virginia, and a sample from the shirt compared to a sample taken from a swab of McCoy’s cheek in April concluded that “McCoy was likely DNA contributor to the stain,” the complaint states.
Edward Sapone, New York-based attorney for McCoy, did not immediately return a phone call requesting comment. Suffolk County Police media representatives did not immediately comment.
Although Newsday reported that McCoy has been suspended without pay, Suffolk County Police spokespersons said they were unable to confirm that fact Thursday.
Brian T. Egan, attorney for Jane Doe, who is handling the woman’s civil case, told Patch, “He’s been charged now with a crime. We applaud the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office for bringing their prosecution to this case. We do intend to vigorously prosecute our case, not only against Officer McCoy, but to hold the county responsible for allowing this officer to be on the street.”
The civil rights case, Egan said, was filed by his client against McCoy, McCoy’s partner, Police Officer Mark Pave and Suffolk County. Pav has not been charged with any crime, Egan said.
Those named in the suit, Egan said, violated the woman’s civil rights when she was a passenger in a car that was pulled over by a marked police vehicle at 10:30 a.m. in Wyandanch on “warrants that were previously dismissed traffic violations.”
Officers, Egan said, “gave her an inappropriate search of her person and then brought her back to the precinct where she suffered a degrading and awful sexual assault. It’s frightening.”
Charges listed in the civil rights complaint, Egan said, include “assault and battery, false imprisonment, and emotional distress.”
Suffolk County, Egan added, “is responsible for this. They have the authority and supervision over the police department.”
Source: https://patch.com