Officer Armando Moronta, second lieutenant Carlos Richard Martinez, and lieutenant Eugenio Perez were arrested Thursday and arraigned in federal court in Brooklyn, NY. They were charged in separate indictments for sex crimes reportedly committed against a total of nine women inmates at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center.
The prison guards are all from Brooklyn and all plead not guilty. Afterward, the trio of prison guards were detained. Each has been suspended without pay. William F. Sweeney Jr., FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge, said Moronta, Martinez, and Perez, used victim's fear and intimidation while committing acts of sexual abuse.
Guards alternated as the lookout to have sex with inmate-victims
Marisa Seifan, Assistant U.S. Attorney, said Moronta, age 39, committed his crimes in a brazen fashion and did not respect the law. He is facing a possible 60-year sentence for preying on three women between May and June 2016. Prosecutors cited an instance of Moronta having alternated with another guard, one acting as the lookout while the other had sex with a woman inmate, then trading places.
Already under indictment for taking bribes and for smuggling contraband, such as K2 (synthetic marijuana), along with cell phones into the Sunset Park detention center, he’s been suspended without pay since January. His $200,000 bail, stemming from the earlier case, was revoked.
Martinez, age 47, is a former Marine who reportedly targeted his victim repeatedly, forcing her into having sex nearly a dozen times from December 2015 until April 2016, according to prosecutors. He assaulted the inmate, who didn’t speak much English, in isolated places and on weekends.
Guard joked on Facebook about Prison Rape Elimination Act
In a Facebook post, including a photo of two men in the federal jail’s uniforms, Martinez joked about the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA).
Last year, he was arrested for a road rage incident in Manhattan when a woman cut him off. After he demanded her to get out of her car, she did, and he punched her two times in the face.
In February, he pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct.
If convicted of the sexual assaults, Martinez could face life in prison, according to documents filed by Bridget M. Rohde, acting U.S. Attorney.
Lieutenants threatened extra prison time if victims told of assaults
Both Martinez and Perez, as lieutenants, had the responsibility of supervising other officers. Among their duties, they were to help identify and prevent sexual harassment and sexual abuse. The duo also had supervisory and disciplinary authority over the women inmates. Both lieutenants also threatened their victims with serving extra prison time if they told anyone, according to prosecutors. Perez took it another step, telling inmate victims that no one would believe them
Prosecutors said that Perez, age 46, allegedly used fear for over three years to keep his five victims from reporting him.
He repeatedly had his victims clean his office at night and that’s when he made them perform oral sex. He, too, could face life in prison if convicted.
Feds had search warrant for Perez to show his penis
Federal prosecutors had a search warrant that ordered Perez to drop his pants and show his penis. As he sexually assaulted the women inmates, he boasted about his “unusual” penis, prosecutors said. Apart from one another, three of his five victims gave matching descriptions, along with the nickname, of Perez’s penis, which cinched the case they had against him.
Nearly a year was spent building the case, according to prosecutors. The evidence includes medical documents, witnesses, victim testimony, records from social media, and phone records.
