NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Federal prosecutors are suing the village of Harrison in Westchester County and the town's fire department after a firefighter sexually harassed and stalked a colleague.
The lawsuit alleges the town's police chief forced her to resign in order to cover up the incident.
Angela Bommarito joined the Harrison Volunteer Fire Department in 2015.
Within a month, senior firefighter Henry Mohr started making unwanted sexual advances on her, demeaning her with sexual comments in front of other co-workers and stalking her.
Bommarito reported Mohr, but officials in the department failed to address the issue, according to the lawsuit.
She then filed a report with the Harrison Police Department.
She recorded the police chief at the time, Anthony Marraccini, telling her that her presence at the firehouse was a "temptation," and that she was "hard to resist sometimes."
In the video, the chief says he wanted "to broker a deal with the Town to make sure this whole thing dies."
The lawsuit alleges he later threatened to arrest her if she didn't sign a resignation letter that he prepared, which she did.
Marraccini was sentenced to prison for tax evasion in 2019.
She later tried to withdraw the resignation, but the fire department refused to let her do so — ending her employment.
After she was allegedly forced to resign, Mohr continued to harass and stalk her.
He was eventually arrested for his behavior and pleaded guilty to harassment.
A family court judge also initiated an order of protection against Mohr.
Despite his legal record of harassing a former co-worker, he remains on the list of the town's volunteer firefighters.
The Title VII lawsuit filed in White Plains federal court is seeking to force the town to implement stronger policies against sexual harassment and damages for Bommarito.
"Sexual harassment in the workplace is abhorrent," said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams. ""All employers, including government agencies, must ensure that sexual harassment is prohibited — not ignored or followed by illegal employment actions against victims, as we allege occurred at the Town of Harrison."
