All charges were dropped against 5 teenagers accused of raping a 18-year-old woman in a Brownsville park in January.
The teens were originally charged with raping the woman after chasing her father off at gunpoint in Osborne Playground on Jan. 7.
The teens told investigators they stumbled across the woman having sex with her father in the darkened park.
The prosecutor’s office dropped all charges after the woman recanted her story which was inconsistent with a cell phone video that showed the sex acts were consensual.
The smartphone video was provided to police by the lawyer of one of the boys who told investigators the sex was consensual.
“The complainant, as well as her father, provided multiple inconsistent accounts to NYPD Detectives and to experienced Special Victims prosecutors about important material facts in this case,” said Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson in a statement.
“The complainant has recanted her allegations of forcible sexual assault and the existence of a gun, and she does not wish to pursue criminal charges against any of the defendants,” he added. “She also refuses to cooperate with any prosecution against her father, who was engaging in sexual conduct with her.”
The Brooklyn DA went on to say he hoped the woman “gets all the support she needs going forward.”
Kenneth Montgomery, an attorney for one of the accused teenagers, said his client’s family was “elated and relieved.”
“I think young men make poor choices and have a misunderstanding of what’s a healthy sexual relationship,” Montgomery said.
