On Monday, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Richard Carruthers gave the sentence to Michael Pena for grabbing the 24-year-old teacher off the street and forcing her into an apartment building courtyard while threatening her with his police-issued firearm. The jury could not decide whether Pena was guilty of rape.
The victim, who had been on her way to her first day of work at a school in the Bronx, told the court that her life was “shattered” by the incident.
“That day was supposed to be a new beginning for me. My life has been shattered — my sense of security, my sense of safety, any and all independence,” she said while sobbing.
“This has impacted every single aspect of my life. He used his weapon and basically destructed my life with the choice he made that day,” she added.
Judge Carruthers described Pena as an embarrassment to the police force, saying the he “showed by his deplorable conduct that he is not one of New York’s finest.”
“She was a young woman at the time of the incident looking forward to teaching underprivileged little children their ABCs, unaware of the evil incident that was about to undertake her,” said Carruthers.
“Michael Pena is a sexual predator. He repeatedly threatened to shoot her in the face. Michael Pena acted purposefully and intentionally throughout this dreadful incident,” he added.
Prior to sentencing, Pena apologized to his victim and said he deserved to be punished, an apology which was scoffed at by Carruthers.
“If I could go back in time, to the day of this incident, and somehow grab myself by the shoulder… I have no explanation for what happened that day,” Pena said in a brief statement after the sentence was issued.
“I will just have that guilt for the rest of my life,” he added.
At the time of the attack, Pena had served three years in NYPD and was engaged to be married. Pena had spent the night drinking alcohol and trying to seduce women when he attacked the teacher on an Upper Manhattan street.
A resident of the building heard the commotion and called police, who learned Pena was a fellow officer only as they arrested him. One officer testified that he threw Pena’s badge to the ground in disgust.
MN/MF/HGL
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