Two cops have been stripped of their guns and shields following the death of a college student, killed when a drunken off-duty officer drove onto a Brooklyn sidewalk, the Daily News has learned.
Officers Jeremy Rodriguez and Emmanuel Collado were placed on modified duty “for the good of the department,” a source said.
The cops had been out with Officer Nicholas Batka, who early Saturday allegedly killed MIT student Andrew Esquivel, 21, while driving drunk in Williamsburg.
Sources said the department will likely argue that Rodriguez and Collado should have done something to prevent Batka from driving.
Batka, 28, was seen driving his SUV erratically moments before the 3 a.m. crash near Bedford Ave. and N. Eighth St.
He plowed into a crowd, killing Esquivel and badly injuring three of the victim’s friends, officials said.
Batka tried to flee the scene, according to witnesses, who blocked him from leaving his car. He later refused a Breathalyzer test and was charged with manslaughter.
Both Rodriguez, who was in the same 2015 Police Academy class as Batka, and Collado, who joined the NYPD in 2013, were assigned to a Manhattan transit task force.
They have since been transferred and will not work in an enforcement position while the investigation is ongoing.
A source familiar with the discipline levied against Rodriguez and Collado said both officers were interviewed by Internal Affairs investigators.
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