Former NYPD detective faces manslaughter charges over George Washington Bridge shooting; bail set at $1 million

New York — Former NYPD detective Victor Romero, 62, was arraigned Thursday in Manhattan Criminal Court over Tuesday night's fatal shooting on the George Washington Bridge, where a judge set bail at $1 million.

Prosecutors said Romero was involved in a road-rage incident around 7:15 p.m. Tuesday on the New Jersey-bound bridge: he allegedly tailgated Koran Irvine's car "closely and at times aggressively". Irvine, a 46-year-old Con Edison worker and father of two, was struck in the right shoulder when the shot entered through the rear passenger window, and died at Englewood Hospital, Assistant District Attorney Matt Sears told the court.

"The defendant left the scene. He did not call 911, and he did not turn himself in," Sears said, as about a dozen of the victim's relatives who packed the courtroom broke down in tears.

Romero retired from the NYPD in July 2001 after working in Brooklyn North Narcotics and, according to police, was employed as a driver and private security guard for a Manhattan hedge fund. He lives with his wife in Haverstraw, Rockland County. Police sources said the former detective tried to surrender but went to the wrong stationhouse and was arrested later.

Defense attorney Alan Abramson asked for lower bail, citing his client's police career: "My client was a hero police officer," he argued. This is a follow-up to the case reported yesterday in A Lo Claro.

Photo: NY Post

Source: New York Post