An Ozone Park man was sentenced for dragging a New York City Police Department detective behind him with an ATV, prosecutors announced Friday.
Kenny Ortiz, 36, pleaded guilty last month to attempted aggravated assault on a police officer. He was sentenced to seven years in prison and five years’ post-release supervision.
According to charges, at 3:25 p.m. on March 2, 2014, Ortiz was seen recklessly driving a yellow ATV through streets and sidewalks on Conduit Avenue. NYPD Detective Matt McCluskey and his partner were in the area in plain clothes and inside an unmarked van.
At a red light, the detectives exited their vehicle and headed toward Ortiz. According to the evidence, Detective McCluskey, wearing his badge around his neck, jumped in front of the ATV and yelled, “Police, police, turn the engine off.” Ortiz then drove forward, dragging the detective for the approximate length of a city block, and sped away.
Detective McCluskey was taken to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center. He suffered numerous broken bones, a fractured pelvis, fractured orbital bone, and a broken nose as well as an infection from an open leg wound and a punctured ankle.
Ortiz turned himself in on March 7, 2014, after the police received a tip regarding his identity. In a statement, Ortiz admitted to driving the ATV and claimed that he didn’t know the victim was a police officer. The dismantled ATV was later recovered from the Ortiz’s girlfriend’s garage.
Acting District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said, “This defendant was driving recklessly before injuring a courageous officer who tried to stop him. Such lawless behavior on our roads is dangerous and unacceptable, making him fully deserving of the prison sentence that was imposed today.”
