MOUNT VERNON, NY — Five police officers have been suspended without pay following a shooting inside a prisoner transport van earlier this month.
The Mount Vernon Police Department announced the suspensions Thursday in connection with an Oct. 16 incident in which a firearm was discharged inside a police van transporting prisoners to the Westchester County Jail.
Officers Omar Bryce and Sonjea Collins were transporting five prisoners when they heard a single gunshot from the rear of the van, followed by a prisoner claiming he had been shot, according to the department.
The van returned immediately to police headquarters, where personnel secured the prisoners and recovered a .22-caliber Rohm-RGT revolver from one of them, Louis Soto.
The department said early findings indicate the firearm should have been detected during arrest or intake.
The five suspended officers are Sgt. Joseph Diaz, Officer Cody Housen, Officer Christian Pacheco, Officer Sonjea Collins and Officer Omar Bryce.
All five were directly involved in Soto’s arrest or processing, according to the department.
The suspensions are for 30 days without pay pending the outcome of an ongoing investigation.
