By Rebecca Henely
A former upstate police officer pleaded guilty in Queens Supreme Court last week to sending sexually explicit images to an NYPD officer posing as a 14-year-old Queens girl, the Queens district attorney’s office reported.
Retired Sgt. Patrick Rosney, 53, of Rensselaer, N.Y., had been a member of the Troy Police Department for 26 years, the DA said. He retired in June 2012 after his arrest, the DA said.
“It is troubling that a person who was once sworn to protect and serve the public has admitted to prowling the Internet for vulnerable young girls,” District Attorney Richard Brown said in a statement.
Rosney admitted to first-degree attempted dissemination of indecent material to a minor Feb. 28 before acting Queens Supreme Court Justice Dorothy Chin-Brandt, the DA said. Using the screen name JoeJazzus1@aol.com, Rosney had contacted May 15 an NYPD vice detective undercover pretending to be a 14-year-old Queens girl, the DA said. His messages to the undercover officer were sexual and implied he wanted to meet for sex June 5, the DA said.
Rosney also asked the undercover officer to communicate with him on Yahoo! Messenger two days later, the DA said. Through the name JoeJazzus13@yahoo.com, Rosney sent the officer webcam shots of his face and genitals, the DA said.
Since June 1, Rosney has been free on $30,000 bail, the DA said. He is expected to be sentenced to five year’s probation and a $5,000 fine at his sentencing May 1, the DA said. His sentence is also expected to include mandatory participation in a sex offender program and his registering as a sex offender with the state, the DA said.
“This case underscores the importance of Internet surveillance initiatives by law enforcement to protect children from sexual predators,” Brown said. “Parents should make it a point to monitor whom their children are communicating with online.”
Reach reporter Rebecca Henely by e-mail at rhenely@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4564.
