Brooklyn jurors today cleared the man accused of acting as the getaway driver during a botched drug den robbery that led to hero cop Peter Figoski’s slaying.
Michael Velez was found not guilty of burglary and murder in connection to the tragic Dec. 12, 2011 shooting in East New York.
The officer’s mom, Mary Ann Figoski, reacted with shock, her jaw dropping, while ex-wife Paulette Figoski buried her head in her hands when the “not guilty” verdicts were read.
“I understand how difficult it is,” Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Alan Marrus said. “I’m sorry.”
Several uniformed officers, in court to support Figoski’s grieving family, laughed and shook their heads in total disbelief over the jurors’ decision.
Velez testified in his own defense and insisted he didn’t know there was a robbery going on. The defendant claimed he was only giving friends a ride that fateful night.
Velez is still being held on a parole violation so Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Alan Marrus ordered him back into custody.
The man who fatally shot Figoski in the face that night, Lamont Pride, was convicted of second-degree murder earlier this week. But Figoski’s family and supporters were outraged that he beat the rap on the more serious first-degree murder charge,
Pride faces 25 to life in prison on the second-degree murder charge, as opposed to the life-without-parole term that he would have faced for the top charge. He’ll be sentenced Feb. 28.
Additional reporting by David K. Li