Victor Romero, a 62-year-old retired New York Police Department detective, will face charges in the death of Koran Irvine, 46, who was shot Tuesday evening, Oct. 20, on the George Washington Bridge. Prosecutors describe a road dispute that ended with a single gunshot. The victim’s family is outraged that a murder charge was reduced to the lesser charge of manslaughter.
The incident happened shortly before 7 p.m. at the entrance to the bridge’s upper level. According to prosecutors, both drivers changed lanes at the same time and nearly collided. Both managed to brake. But that was not the end of it.
Investigators say surveillance footage shows Romero, driving a black work Range Rover, following Irvine’s Volkswagen Golf, tailgating him aggressively, then pulling up alongside him on the right and firing one shot into the rear window. He then drove away. Koran Irvine died. He was on his way home to Rockland County after working late that day. He leaves behind his wife, a 14-year-old daughter and an 11-year-old son.
Romero, a resident of Haverstraw, was arrested Wednesday on a murder charge. In court on Thursday, however, prosecutors brought a lesser charge: first-degree manslaughter, which carries a lighter penalty than murder. Investigators explain that a single shot was fired into the rear window, rather than a series of shots or a close-range execution. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office stresses that the investigation is ongoing.
A dozen or so members of the victim’s family came to the hearing. Irvine’s sister told reporters that the defendant fled the scene and abandoned her brother, yet the court did not consider him a flight risk. The family’s attorneys argue that the former police officer was treated leniently: he could have gone to work the next day, and he turned himself in at a precinct on his own.
Romero retired in 2001, soon after an off-duty shooting in which he was involved. According to the family’s attorneys, his departure ended the inquiry into that case and allowed him to keep his gun permit.
Sources: ABC7 New York, FOX 5 New York
Source: Nowy Dziennik
