Mill Basin Man, 47, Charged With Sexually Assaulting 18-Year-Old While Pretending To Be Cop
Walter Barnes, a 47-year-old Mill Basin man, has been charged with posing as a police officer to force an 18-year-old woman to engage in sex acts and attempting to rape her.
Barnes was driving near Aberdeen Street and Bushwick Avenue on October 2, at approximately 6:30am, when he flagged down his victim while she walked to a store. He offered a ride, and once inside the car he told her he was a New York City police officer. He threatened to arrest her unless she performed a sex act on him, according to Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson.
Prosecutors say Barnes then drove her to another location and again forced her to perform a sex act. The victim tried to escape the perv’s car, but the doors were locked. The defendant allegedly tried to rape her, but the victim grabbed the car keys from the ignition and escaped.
Barnes was slapped with an eight-count indictment yesterday, including two counts of predatory sexual assault, two counts of first-degree criminal sexual act, first-degree attempted rape, two counts of third-degree criminal sexual act and one count of first-degree criminal impersonaltion. His bail is set at $200,000 bond or $250,000 cash. He faced 25-years-to-life in prison if convicted.
“This defendant is accused of impersonating a police officer to commit a cowardly and deplorable crime against an innocent young woman. He will now be held accountable for his action,” said Thompson in a statement.
