5 teens cleared of rape
B’klyn DA: Gal lied, was having sex with dad
PROSECUTORS have dismissed charges against five Brooklyn teens accused of raping an 18-year-old woman in a Brownsville playground after chasing off her father at gunpoint, officials said.
Not only did the woman recant her sexual assault allegations, but she also told investigators there was no gun, said Brooklyn DA Kenneth Thompson.
And to make matters much, much worse, she was actually in the midst of “sexual conduct” with her own father, Thompson (photo inset) said.
“The complainant, as well as her father, provided multiple inconsistent accounts to NYPD detectives and to experienced Special Victims prosecutors about important material facts in this case,” Thompson said in a statement. “The complainant has recanted her allegations of forcible sexual assault and the existence of a gun, and she does not wish to pursue criminal charges against any of the defendants. She also refuses to cooperate with any prosecution against her father, who was engaging in sexual conduct with her.”
“The NYPD has been informed of the decision of the Kings County District Attorney to dismiss this case,” the Police Department said in a statement. “As of this time, the NYPD investigation into this matter is now officially closed.”
According to early accounts, the teens took turns raping the woman Jan. 9 in Brownsville’s Osborn Playground after using a gun to chase off her father near the park’s handball courts.
“Get the f--k out of here,” one of the teens barked, according to initial accounts. The victim’s father ran from the playground to get help, officials said at the time. When he returned a short time later with two uniformed officers, the supposed suspects scattered. The dad went into a bodega to call 911, but he was turned away by a store clerk.
Days later, cops arrested Denzel Murray, 14; Shaquell Cooper, 15; Ethan Phillip, 15; Onandi Brown, 17, and Travis Beckford, 17. But the suspects claimed the father was having sexual intercourse with the daughter, and two defendants told police the sex they had with the teen was consensual, sources said at the time.
Sources said DNA from two of the then suspects was recovered. The accuser ultimately said she never resisted them or said “no.”
A source said the accuser was “very fragile, very troubled.”
The father and daughter, who sources said were drinking in the park, failed to identify any of the first four suspects from a police lineup. A source
said the accuser was in foster care and living out of state until last summer. The man who was with the woman is her biological dad, who lost custody when she was 3 years old. The accuser’s mother is not in her life.
“We are thankful to the district attorney’s office for the thoughtful and prudent time they took to fully investigate this case,” said Murray’s attorney, Ken Montgomery, who represents one of the teens.
“They did what the NYPD, City Hall and so-called community leaders didn’t do. They didn’t judge these young men, and investigated what actually happened. Now separate from the charges being dismissed there is a lesson to be learned. It is unhealthy to have sexual relations in parks even if it’s consensual. We don’t want our young men to grow up thinking this is OK, because it’s not.”
At the time, elected officials and community leaders criticized officials for waiting so long to notify them about the alleged attack.