Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., today announced the sentencing of ELVIS NINA PICHARDO, 43, to 20 years in state prison and 20 years of post-release supervision for sexually assaulting three people in Inwood Hill Park in July 2021. On December 6, 2023, NINA PICHARDO pleaded guilty in New York State Supreme Court to two counts of Attempted Rape in the First Degree, one count of Assault in the First Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony, and one count of Menacing in the Second Degree.
“Elvis Nina Pichardo terrified our community when he attacked three different people enjoying a warm summer day in Inwood Hill Park in the span of less than one hour,” said District Attorney Bragg. “As the sentence today makes clear, this type of repugnant conduct will not be tolerated.”
According to court documents and statements made on the record in court, and as admitted in the defendant’s guilty plea, at approximately 11:10 a.m. on July 21, 2021, NINA PICHARDO approached a 34-year-old woman, threatened to rape her, and hit her when she refused to follow NINA PICHARDO. She attempted to call 911, but the defendant took her phone. When a bystander approached, the woman asked for help and NINA PICHARDO ran off with her phone.
At approximately 11:30 a.m. NINA PICHARDO approached a 40-year-old man walking his two dogs and made similar sexual comments and threats. NINA PICHARDO demanded the victim’s cellphone, and when he replied that he didn’t have one and began to leave, NINA PICHARDO picked up a large stick and chased him until they encountered another person on the path.
Immediately afterward, NINA PICHARDO approached a 44-year-old woman while carrying the stick and grabbed her. They struggled, and NINA PICHARDO repeatedly struck her head against the concrete before attempting to rape her. A bystander found the disoriented victim alone and called 911. NINA PICHARDO had already fled the scene with the victim’s backpack and various belongings.
The defendant was arrested in connection to a public lewdness incident several hours after the assaults, and charged with the Inwood Hill Park attacks soon thereafter.
Special Victims Division
Since taking office in 2022, D.A. Bragg has taken numerous steps to put the dignity and well-being of survivors at the center of the Office’s work. D.A. Bragg created the Office’s first Special Victims Division helmed by leaders with expertise in providing services to survivors and implementing trauma-informed practices. D.A. Bragg also created the Office’s first Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Bureau by combining the Sex Crimes and Domestic Violence Units, staffed for the first time by Assistant D.A.s doing this work full-time. The Office continues to improve its practice through a wide variety of trainings, and by eliciting feedback through its new Special Victims Division Advisory Council comprised of more than a dozen external stakeholders.
Assistant D.A. Courtney Groves handled the prosecution of this case under the supervision of Assistant D.A.s Coleen Balbert (Chief of the Forensic Sciences Unit), Shannon Lucey (Deputy Chief of the Special Victims Division), Vanessa Puzio (Deputy Chief of the Intimate Partner & Sexual Violence Bureau), and Nicole Blumberg (Chief of the Intimate Partner & Sexual Violence Bureau), as well as Executive Assistant D.A. Justin McNabney (Chief of the Special Victims Division).
District Attorney Bragg thanked the NYPD, including the entirety of the Manhattan Special Victims Squad, and specifically Detective Sean Conway.
Defendant Information
ELVIS NINA PICHARDO
Bronx, NY
Convicted:
- Assault in the First Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony, a class B felony, one count
- Attempted Rape in the First Degree, a class C felony, two counts
- Menacing in the Second Degree, a class A misdemeanor, one count
Sentenced:
- 20 years in prison
- 20 years post-release supervision
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