NEW YORK (MDAO) – Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg today announced the sentencing of Otoniel Mckenzie to 4 years in state prison – the maximum allowed under New York State Penal Law – for raping a 24-year-old woman in her apartment, covertly filming the rape, and stalking her for more than a week in July 2021.
Mckenzie was convicted by a New York State Supreme Court jury of Rape in the Third Degree, Unlawful Dissemination or Publication of an Intimate Image, and Stalking in the Fourth Degree, among other charges.
On August 17, 2022, Mckenzie was sentenced to 5 years in state prison following his trial conviction for Stalking in the First Degree 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,” said District Attorney Bragg. “I thank the survivor for her bravery in taking the stand, and the members of the jury for carefully considering the evidence before them. I am grateful to our partners in the NYPD for their work identifying and arresting McKenzie, and finally, for our prosecutors who fought for accountability. If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault, I assure you, we are here to help: call 212-335-9373.”
As proven at trial, on July 18, 2021, at approximately 4:00 a.m., Mckenzie approached a 24-year-old woman walking to her apartment on the Lower East Side. Mckenzie approached the woman and spoke with her. After placing his hand over her mouth, Mckenzie ultimately made his way back to the woman’s apartment. There, mere minutes after arriving, Mckenzie raped and choked her in her bedroom. Mckenzie surreptitiously recorded himself raping and choking the survivor in a 16-minute cellphone video.
Between July 18, 2021, and July 27, 2021, Mckenzie texted the woman from six different phone numbers. In one instance, he sent her a clip of the video, which he had manipulated to make the encounter appear consensual. Mckenzie attempted to use it as leverage over her and threatened to send it to her parents if she did not meet with him in person and continued to block his numbers. In a final text message, Mckenzie told the survivor “I hope you always remember this ordeal because I’m sure it’s going to shape your life forever.”
Four days later, on July 31, 2021, Mckenzie followed a 29-year-old woman for approximately 20 minutes as she walked down Spring and Prince Streets. During that time, he groped her three times, repeatedly hiding, coming up behind her or jumping out at her, groping her, and running off.
On August 1, 2021, Mckenzie allegedly sexually assaulted two additional women in Williamsburg by placing his hand over their mouths and groping them. That case is being handled by the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office. He was arrested after NYPD detectives identified Mckenzie in video surveillance and linked the incidents.
While in custody awaiting trial, Mckenzie made dozens of phone calls asking his friend to access his electronic devices and further edit the secretly recorded video to make it appear less incriminating to his defense attorney and the D.A.’s Office. He also asked his friend to delete the video after he was finished editing it.
