An off-duty New York City police officer has been arrested on alleged charges of first-degree rape, second-degree strangulation, and third-degree assault. Samuel Sierra, 35, was taken into custody on Friday in East Harlem, with authorities confirming that the alleged attack was “domestic in nature.”
Sources revealed that Sierra is accused of assaulting a family member or partner, though further details of the incident have not been disclosed.
The officer, who joined the NYPD in 2016, has been suspended without pay pending trial. He was expected to be arraigned on Saturday at Manhattan Criminal Court according to the New York Post.
Sierra earned $167,584 last year, according to city records. Most of his career was spent patrolling the 77th Precinct in Brooklyn, but he was transferred to the Auxiliary Police Section in December 2023, where he supervised auxiliary officers as per the 50-a.org website.
This is not the first allegation against Sierra. In February 2023, he was accused of assaulting a woman in her 20s during a traffic stop and abusing his authority. Although he was required to undergo retraining, the Civilian Complaint Review Board deemed the allegations to be “within department guidelines.”
The NYPD has yet to comment further on the case, which has raised serious concerns about officer accountability and conduct.
