Bronx District Attorney Darcel D. Clark announced on Friday, Sept. 27, that an NYPD Police Officer, who was assigned to the 44th Precinct in The Bronx, has been charged in two separate indictments, for assaulting a suspect with a police radio and for lying about a patrol car striking and injuring a motorcyclist.

 

The 44th Precinct serves 1.97 square miles of the southwest portion of the Bronx: The precinct is home to the Grand Concourse, Bronx Terminal Market, and Yankee Stadium.

 

In the context of the announcement, Clark said, “The defendant allegedly lied about police car accident that injured a motorist to cover up for the officer who was driving, and four months later the defendant allegedly struck a suspect on the head with his radio. His alleged actions are a betrayal of public trust and tarnish the shield.”

 

Clark said Kenny Victoria, 34, was arraigned on Friday on both indictments before Bronx Supreme Court Justice Brenda Rivera and is due back in court in December.

 

She said Victoria was charged in one indictment with attempting to offer a false instrument in the first degree, second-degree offering a false instrument for filing, second-degree falsifying business records, and official misconduct.

 

According to the first investigation, on Dec. 16, 2023, at around 2:24 p.m., near Monroe Avenue and East 173^rd Street in the Claremont section of The Bronx, Victoria was a passenger in an NYPD patrol car that crashed into a motorcyclist, fracturing his leg, and forcing him over the car’s hood. The biker was arrested and charged with reckless engagement and criminal mischief. An investigation revealed Victoria allegedly filed a collision report stating the motorcyclist was doing a wheelie and drove into the police vehicle. However, video surveillance showed that the police car accelerated and turned into the motorcyclist as he was entering an intersection.

 

In the second indictment, Victoria was charged with second-degree assault, third-degree assault, and official misconduct. According to the investigation, on April 30, 2024, at approximately 3:41 p.m., near 311 East 170th Street, southwest of Claremont Park, Victoria responded to calls of a person with a gun. When he arrived, he identified the man with the gun, and chased him. The suspect tossed the gun and was eventually pulled to the ground by another officer.

 

Victoria allegedly struck the suspect on the head with his police radio. The suspect received staples at a hospital to stop the bleeding from the back of his head.

 

Kenny is a police officer since 2015. According to his disciplinary history, Victoria was found guilty for two other incidents in 2019. While on-duty, he abused his authority by conducting a strip-search of a person known to the department without sufficient legal authority and without the knowledge and approval of a supervisor, and while on-duty, he conducted a strip-search of a person known to the department without sufficient legal authority in a holding cell with security camera(s).

 

The penalty recommended was loss of eight vacation days.

 

Kenny has also been recognized for meritorious and excellent police duty over the years. He is deemed innocent unless and until convicted in a court of law.

 

Victoria’s lawyers, Alex Zhik and Todd Spodek of Spodek Law Group P.C. said of the charges, “Police Officer Victoria has gone above and beyond in protecting the citizens of New York. We are confident that at trial, the truth will emerge and PO Victoria will be exonerated of any wrongdoing.”

 

In other news from the 44th Precinct, in March 2021, the NYPD released bodycam video of a 44th Precinct officer-involved shooting from July 7, 2019. In October 2021, an off-duty officer assigned to the 44th Precinct, Jermack Romero, 39, was charged with assault and criminal mischief in the confines of the 50th Precinct. Romero is deemed innocent unless and until convicted in a court of law. Norwood News has reached out to the Bronx District Attorney’s office for an update on the latest status of his case.