NEW YORK (AP) — A New York state trooper who claimed he was shot and wounded by an unknown gunman on a Long Island highway last year is facing criminal charges.
Thomas Mascia and his parents surrendered Monday morning at the state police barracks in Farmingdale and will be arraigned in Hempstead court later, according to Trooper Brittany Burton, a state police spokesperson.
Mascia will be charged with official misconduct, tampering with evidence and falsifying documents, she said. His parents, Dorothy and Thomas, have each been charged with criminal possession of a firearm.
Jeffrey Lichtman, a lawyer for the family, declined to comment other than to confirm the family had surrendered to face the charges.
Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly is expected hold a press conference with state police at her office in Mineola later Monday.
The 27-year-old Mascia, who became a trooper in 2019, was suspended without pay in November after state police launched a criminal probe.
Mascia claimed he was shot in the leg on Oct. 30 by the driver of a black sedan that had been parked on the left-hand shoulder of the Southern State Parkway, about a mile from his home.
The trooper claimed the driver fled in the direction of New York City in a car with temporary New Jersey registration, prompting authorities to launch a manhunt that lasted days.
Police said there was no video footage of the episode since the trooper’s body camera was not activated at the time.