Last October, Mascia, 27, reported that he was shot in the line of duty by a “Black or dark-skinned Hispanic male,” according to a police report. On Monday, the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office told ABC News that Mascia surrendered himself to police and stands accused of staging the shooting and conjuring an imaginary Black man to blame for it.
“He knew the fear that it would create, and he did it anyway,” Nassau County DA Anne Donnelly said during a press conference Monday, calling Mascia’s alleged actions “unconscionable.” Donnelly said Mascia could face one to three years in prison if convicted on charges of official misconduct, falsely reporting a crime and tampering with evidence.
According to ABC report:
Police matched the gun used in the shooting to one owned by Mascia, officials said. It was not his service weapon, officials said. There was also “close to $800,000” found at the family’s home, Donnelly said.
Mascia was on duty Oct. 30 in Hempstead when he “initiated a radio transmission for shots fired,” according to a felony complaint obtained by ABC News.
He then “claimed he was shot by the driver of a black Dodger Charger described as either a Black or dark-skinned Hispanic male.”
The complaint alleges Mascia actually “staged the scene of the shooting,” placing shell casings on the ground hours earlier.
He then allegedly “shot himself in the leg in another location before returning to the staged location” on the Southern State Parkway.
State police temporarily shut down the section of the parkway where Mascia claimed the incident occurred “in an effort to locate the non-existent shooters, causing alarm and inconvenience to the public,” the complaint states.
The complaint accuses Mascia of staging the shooting “for the benefit of gaining attention or sympathy for himself,” but it’s arguable that what he really appeared to be doing by shooting himself (allegedly) is attempting to cover up a crime he committed. It will be interesting to get an update on what was going on with that “close to $800,000” officers found in Marcia’s family home.
According to ABC’s report, Mascia’s parents, Dorothy and Thomas, also surrendered to police on Monday on charges of criminal possession of a firearm, the district attorney’s office said. The firearm was not the same one used in the shooting, but Mascia’s father is a convicted felon, making it illegal for him to own a gun, Donnelly said.
Mascia’s father, a former New York Police Department officer, was dismissed from the force in 1993 over accusations of running a cocaine ring, according to the New York Times.
SOURCE: newsone.com