Retired NYPD detective indicted on second-degree murder charges in connection to deadly GWB shooting
While Victor Romero was originally arrested for murder, charges were downgraded to manslaughter, before now being upgraded back to second-degree murder.
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Victor Romero, the retired NYPD detective accused of shooting and killing an off-duty Con-Ed worker on the George Washington Bridge, was indicted by a grand jury Tuesday on a charge of second-degree murder.
"He destroyed a young and loving family, and for this, he must be held accountable," said Gail Forde, the aunt of shooting victim Koran Irvine.
Police say Irvine was driving home to Valley Cottage in Rockland County last Tuesday night, when he and Romero almost got into a car crash. Romero then allegedly followed Irvine, pulled up next to him, and fired a gun into his car.
"It could have been anybody," said Irvine's sister, Zeriah, "but it just happened to be my big brother."
While Romero was originally arrested on second-degree murder charges, that was then dropped to first-degree manslaughter, kicking off a wave of letters and protests from Irvine's family, friends and union.
Tuesday morning, the Manhattan District Attorney's office tells News 12 it presented the case to a grand jury, and that after "an extensive ongoing investigation," charges had been upgraded back to second-degree murder - which the jury then voted to indict Romero on.
"I would attribute it to what should have happened in the first place," said Keith White, the attorney for Irvine's family. "I'd also attribute it to the work of blue-collar, working class people."
"We know it was murder," added Nicholas Caballero, a close friend of Irvine. "That man, if you can even call him that, hunted down my brother."
Romero is currently out on $1 million bail, but both White and other members of Irvine's circle said they were hopeful that in light of the indictment, the bail would be revoked.
"There's nothing that we can learn to avoid what happened to Koran, nothing," said a longtime family friend. "But we can learn something from what's going to happen to Victor Romero."
Caballero said they would keep fighting, promising through tears that "we're going to see this through."
Romero is scheduled to be arraigned on the indictment Nov. 23.
