Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., announced the guilty plea of JAMEL MCIVER, 31, for following a 21-year-old woman, who was a stranger, into her Upper West Side apartment building and raping her in March 2023. MCIVER pleaded guilty in a New York State Supreme Court to one count of Rape in the First Degree. He is expected to be sentenced on December 11, 2024.
“Today Jamel McIver was held responsible for forcing a woman into a staircase and attacking her in a horrifying act of sexual violence last year,” said District Attorney Bragg. “Every New Yorker has the right to come home safely without fear, and we will continue to hold those accountable who jeopardize the safety of fellow Manhattanites. If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual violence, I urge you to please contact our Special Victims Division at 212-335-9373.”
According to court documents and statements made on the record in court, and as admitted in the defendant’s guilty plea, on March 4, 2023, a 21-year-old woman was returning home after a night out. At approximately 1:20 a.m., MCIVER followed the woman while she was walking into the elevator of her apartment building, near West 64th Street and Amsterdam Avenue. He threatened the woman and pulled her into a stairwell where he sexually assaulted and raped her. He continued threatening her during the sexual assault. MCIVER pulled the woman down multiple staircases and eventually outside the building, where he threatened her a final time, before letting her go. MCIVER removed his jacket and sweatshirt and fled the scene.
Assistant D.A.s Jonathan Carfagno and James Clarke (Trial Bureau 40) are handling the prosecution of the case under the supervision of Assistant D.A.s Shannon Lucey (Deputy Chief of the Special Victims Division), Vanessa Puzio (Deputy Chief of the Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Bureau, “IPSVB”), Nicole Blumberg (Chief of the IPSVB), and Executive Assistant D.A. Justin McNabney (Chief of the Special Victims Division). Former IPSVB Analyst Noah Taylor provided valuable assistance. The Survivor Services Bureau is also providing valuable support, particularly Special Victims Counselor Nakeisha Vanterpool.
D.A. Bragg also thanked the NYPD, particularly Police Officer Mark Polak of the Manhattan Special Victims Squad.
Defendant Information:
JAMEL MCIVER
New York, NY
Convicted:
- Rape in the First Degree, a class B felony, one count
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