Officers Kenneth Moreno(right) and Franklin Mata(Left) were found not guilty yesterday of raping a drunken East Village woman they’d been called to help.
Both men, however, were found guilty of official misconduct for going back into the woman’s apartment three times without alerting their superiors — the police department said they will waste no time getting rid of the officers.
The two officers were each convicted only of three misdemeanor counts of official misconduct after jurors found that they knowingly refrained from their duties during three caught-on-video return trips to the drunken accuser’s East 13th Street apartment in December 2008.
In fact one of the officers had been recorded on tape admitting to using a condom when having sex with the woman who made the accusation.
The cornerstone of the defense required that the woman was too drunk to have a credible account of the incident, but sober enough to consent to sex. The “victim” still has a $57 million lawsuit against Moreno that she has no intention of dropping. The officers are due back in court on June 28 for sentencing; both could face up to only two years in jail.
Ladies, if you are drunk and in need of assistance do not contact the police department you just might get raped.
The Post printed a transcript of the secretly taped conversation between the victim and Moreno, who is married with two kids, which investigators orchestrated outside the Ninth Precinct:
Woman: “I woke up and you guys were taking advantage of me.”
Moreno: “Nobody took advantage of you.”
Woman: “You were having sex with me. I was violated.”
Moreno: “No you weren’t — nothing happened.”
Woman: “You’re lying.”
Moreno: “OK. It turned from us trying to help you to getting really crazy.”
Moreno: “What do you remember?”
Woman: “I remember getting up the stairs and waking up on the bathrooom floor. The next thing I know, I’m in my bed, you’re taking off my clothes and having sex with me.”
Moreno: “OK”
WomAn: “OK?”
Moreno: “It wasn’t done intentionally. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I just got caught up. I’m sorry.”
Woman: “I need to know if I’m OK. Did you wear a condom — yes or no?”
Moreno: “Yes, I did. You don’t have to worry about any diseases or getting pregnant.”
Woman: “Was it only you?”
Moreno: “It was only me.”
Moreno: “If you stop drinking, I’ll be your boyfriend. I’m not a bad man. I’m a good friend to have.”
