NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A man previously convicted of stalking and groping a woman will serve more time in prison for raping and stalking another victim, Manhattan prosecutors announced Wednesday.
Otoniel McKenzie was found guilty of third-degree rape, unlawful dissemination or publication of an intimate image, fourth-degree stalking and other crimes after he raped a 24-year-old woman in her apartment, covertly filmed the rape and stalked her for more than a week in July 2021.
He was sentenced to four years in state prison, which he will serve consecutively after a five-year sentence for first-degree stalking and forcible touching for following and repeatedly groping a stranger as she walked down Spring Street near 6th Avenue on July 31, 2021.
"Otoniel McKenzie committed utterly horrific crimes when he raped, filmed, and then stalked a young New Yorker for more than a week," Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said in a statement. "I thank the survivor for her bravery in taking the stand, and the members of the jury for carefully considering the evidence before them."
According to court documents, McKenzie approached a 24-year-old woman who was walking into her Lower East Side apartment on July 18, 2021, around 4 a.m. McKenzie approached the woman and, after speaking with her, placed his hand over her mouth before returning to the woman's apartment. He raped and choked her in her bedroom just minutes after arriving.
Prosecutors said he recorded himself raping and choking the survivor in a 16-minute cellphone video.
McKenzie texted the woman from six different phone numbers between July 18 and July 27, once sending a video clip that he had manipulated to make the encounter appear consensual.
He tried to use the video as leverage, threatening to send it to her parents if she didn't meet him in person and continuing to block his phone numbers, court records show. In his final message to the victim, McKenzie wrote, "I hope you always remember this ordeal because I’m sure it's going to shape your life forever."
On July 31, 2021, McKenzie followed a 29-year-old woman for around 20 minutes as she walked down Spring and Prince streets. As he followed her, he groped her three times, repeatedly hiding, coming up behind her or jumping out at her, groping her and running off.
The next day, McKenzie allegedly sexually assaulted two more women in Brooklyn by placing his hand over their mouths and groping them. He was arrested after NYPD detectives identified him in video surveillance footage and linked him to the incidents. Those cases are being handled by the Brooklyn district attorney's office.
Prosecutors said McKenzie made dozens of phone calls while in custody awaiting trial, asking his friend to access his electronic devices and further edit the secretly recorded video to appear less incriminating to his defense attorney and the DA's office. He also asked his friend to delete the video after he was finished editing it.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to rainn.org.
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