Fake NYPD officer identified as pepper-sprayed tourist

Lina Portman2 days ago

0 1 minute read

Dominic Ogrady, 35, allegedly wore a fake NYPD badge in an attempt to stop suspected fare evaders on the New York City subway. Photo courtesy of NYPD

June 30 (UPI) — A man who posed as an NYPD officer last Sunday and tear-gassed a tourist has been identified as a former inmate who had already spent six years in prison.

Dominic Ogrady, 35, allegedly blocked commuters from entering the South Ferry subway station in Manhattan and attempted to arrest them while identifying himself as a police officer and displaying a fake NYPD detective shield on a chain around his neck.

Around 6:35 p.m. that day, a 46-year-old man attempted to drive away from Ogrady, but he discharged a can of pepper spray into the back of the victim's head before fleeing on an R train towards the north.

The 46-year-old victim suffered burns and swelling to his face and went to Bellevue Hospital where he was treated and released, police said. Ogrady has not yet been caught.

According to the New York Daily News, the 46-year-old victim was with his family and entered the station through an open exit door without paying the fare.

Ogrady reportedly used the alias Domingo Diaz and served six years in prison after being convicted of attempted weapons possession when he was arrested with a gun in Harlem in 2007. He was released from prison in 2014.