Grand jury indicts ex-NYPD detective in GWB road rage shooting on murder charge

A grand jury on Tuesday indicted the retired NYPD detective accused of gunning down another driver on the George Washington Bridge on a murder charge in a suspected road rage case that has drawn national attention.

The Manhattan district attorney’s office says the grand jury secured a second-degree murder indictment against Victor Romero. The development comes as he remains free on a $1 million bail, and hours after he appeared publicly in court for the first time since his arrest in last week’s death of Koran Irvine, a 46-year-old father of two.

Irvine, a 46-year-old father of two, was shot and killed on the bridge last week in an apparent case of road rage. Prosecutors initially arraigned him on a voluntary manslaughter charge, prompting calls from the family for escalated counts. That came for relatives Tuesday, as they rallied outside of the coursehouse.

Irvine worked for Con Edison, though he was off-duty at the time of the killing. Con Ed workers and union reps also rallied Tuesday ahead of Romero’s court appearance, jeering at the retired officer as he was led inside.

Nicholas Liakas, one of the lawyers representing the Irvine family, shared the following statement before the charges were upgraded:

“It is deeply troubling that Victor Romero, a retired NYPD detective, was initially charged with murder, only to have that charge downgraded to manslaughter—and has now been able to post bail. It is clear that he received preferential treatment because of his former position in law enforcement. Koran Irvine’s family deserves a full and transparent explanation. We will continue to stand with them and fight for accountability and justice.”

On Tuesday, the Manhattan district attorney’s office presented second-degree murder charges to a grand jury, which returned a true bill. The presentation to the grand jury followed an extensive ongoing investigation since the criminal court arraignment last Thursday.

Family and friends of Irvine say news of an upgraded murder charge against Romero is welcomed, but not enough.

“Seems like he’s being protected and doesn’t seem like it’s fair at this point,” Chris Demmerle, friend of Irvine, told News 4.

Romero is expected back in court on November 23 for NY Supreme Court arraignment.