The Daily Populous Friday April 10th, 2026 evening edition
Authored by apnews.com and submitted by 804Brady

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NEW YORK (AP) — A former New York City police sergeant was sentenced Thursday to three to nine years in prison for tossing a picnic cooler full of ice and drinks at a fleeing suspect, who then crashed his motorized scooter and died.

Erik Duran, 38, was convicted of manslaughter in the 2023 death of 30-year-old Eric Duprey. The ex-sergeant said he was trying to protect other officers from the approaching scooter. He is the first former NYPD officer sentenced to prison for an on-duty death in at least two decades.

“I took this job to save lives. I felt terrible once I saw Eric Duprey crash,” Duran told a Bronx judge, saying he “did everything he could” to attend to the man’s injuries.

“I never wanted this to happen,” he added, apologizing to Duprey’s family in Spanish as a court interpreter translated.

Duprey’s mother, Gretchen Soto, wept as Duran spoke. Earlier, she told the court: “There are no words to express what I feel.”

Gretchen Soto, mother of Eric Duprey, and Black Lives Matter advocate Hawk Newsome are seen outside court following the sentencing of former New York City police sergeant Erik Duran at the Bronx County Hall of Justice Thursday, April 9, 2026, New York. (AP Photo/Michael R. Sisak) Gretchen Soto, mother of Eric Duprey, and Black Lives Matter advocate Hawk Newsome are seen outside court following the sentencing of former New York City police sergeant Erik Duran at the Bronx County Hall of Justice Thursday, April 9, 2026, New York. (AP Photo/Michael R. Sisak) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook

Judge Guy Mitchell said he did not accept the ex-sergeant’s defense that his actions were justified, concluding that Duran hurled the cooler because he “was upset that Mr. Duprey was getting away.” If there was no cooler, the judge said, Duprey “would have driven by” Duran and “could’ve been captured another day.”

Duran was immediately taken into custody after sentencing. His lawyer, Arthur Aidala, said he will ask a court to free Duran on bail while he appeals.

“Nobody’s above the law,” a woman shouted in a courthouse hallway after the sentence was announced.

Afterward, Soto and Duprey’s partner, Pearl Velez, said they did not accept Duran’s apology.

“How you gonna say sorry now?” Velez said.

Duran’s union, the Sergeants Benevolent Association, said thousands of officers signed an online petition calling for him to be spared prison.

“Today will forever be the darkest day of our profession,” union president Vincent Vallelong said. Duran’s prison sentence, he said, “puts in the back of a police officer’s mind that they can lose their freedom” for making a split-second decision.

Officers in NYPD jackets packed the courtroom gallery, while a couple dozen protesters outside demanded justice for Duprey.

Demonstrators stand outside the Bronx County Hall of Justice in New York, Thursday, April 9, 2026, where former New York City police sergeant Erik Duran is set to be sentenced for tossing a picnic cooler full of drinks at a fleeing suspect, Eric Duprey, who then crashed his motorized scooter and died. (AP Photo/David Martin) Demonstrators stand outside the Bronx County Hall of Justice in New York, Thursday, April 9, 2026, where former New York City police sergeant Erik Duran is set to be sentenced for tossing a picnic cooler full of drinks at a fleeing suspect, Eric Duprey, who then crashed his motorized scooter and died. (AP Photo/David Martin) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook

Duran’s sentence, less than the maximum of five to 15 years, matched what prosecutors with state Attorney General Letitia James’ office had sought. Prosecutor Joseph Bianco said the ex-sergeant recklessly caused Duprey’s death and attempted to cover up his actions.

Defense lawyer Andrew Quinn argued for no prison time, calling Duprey’s death the “unintended and tragic consequences” of a “reckless decision” Duran made in a span of 2.5 seconds.

Duran grew up in the Bronx and led a “model, exemplary life” prior to Duprey’s death. A married father of three, he joined the NYPD because he wanted to make the borough “cleaner and safer for the kids who came after him,” Quinn said.

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“He is now the cooler cop,” Quinn said.

Duran was part of a narcotics policing unit that conducted a “buy-and-bust” operation in the Bronx on Aug. 23, 2023. Police said Duprey sold drugs to an undercover officer, then tried to flee on a scooter.

Surveillance video showed Duprey driving the motorized scooter on a sidewalk toward a group of people. As he approached, the then-sergeant — who wasn’t in uniform — picked up a bystander’s cooler and threw it.

The container struck Duprey, who lost control of the scooter, slammed into a tree and crashed onto the pavement. Duprey was not wearing a helmet. He sustained fatal head injuries and died almost instantly, according to prosecutors.

They argued Duran had enough time to warn others to move, but instead hurled the cooler because he was angry.

Duran, however, testified at his trial that he made a quick decision to keep other officers safe from the scooter speeding toward them.

“He was gonna crash into us,” Duran said then, adding “all I had time for was to try again to stop or to try to get him to change directions.”

Former New York City police sergeant Erik Duran stands during his sentencing hearing at the Bronx County Hall of Justice Thursday, April 9, 2026, New York, for tossing a picnic cooler full of drinks at a fleeing suspect, Eric Duprey, who then crashed his motorized scooter and died. (AP Photo/Michael R. Sisak) Former New York City police sergeant Erik Duran stands during his sentencing hearing at the Bronx County Hall of Justice Thursday, April 9, 2026, New York, for tossing a picnic cooler full of drinks at a fleeing suspect, Eric Duprey, who then crashed his motorized scooter and died. (AP Photo/Michael R. Sisak) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Share Share Facebook

Duran opted to have Judge Mitchell, not a jury, decide the case.

Duran worked for the NYPD for 13 years before the crash, which spurred his suspension. He was fired after his conviction in February.

Duprey was a delivery driver and had three young children. Soto, who said she was on a video call with him right before he died, has disputed the police claims that he sold drugs and fled from officers.

She told the judge Thursday her son “is not just a name, not just one more case.”

“It is an unjust incident,” Soto said through a Spanish interpreter. “As a mother, I have to miss him now every day.”

Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz contributed to this report.

Regnes on April 10th, 2026 at 08:52 UTC »

If you watch the video of it, it's pretty clear that it wasn't a split-second decision and was actually quite calculated. He had the cooler ready to throw seconds in advance and timed it for exactly when the victim drove by.

Friscogonewild on April 10th, 2026 at 07:13 UTC »

> “Today will forever be the darkest day of our profession,” union president Vincent Vallelong said. Duran’s prison sentence, he said, “puts in the back of a police officer’s mind that they can lose their freedom” for making a split-second decision.

What a weird fucking world these dudes live in, where this is a bad thing.

Police culture is just fubar. It's like they want their job to be dangerous and Hollywood-like. They escalate at every turn. There's should be no point during a non-violent crime where you have to decide in a split second whether or not to use lethal force against a suspect. If you just HAVE to do undercover drug sales because you're otherwise bored, just record the transaction and find the guy later.

I get it. Jumping out from behind a tree and saying NYPD FREEZE PUT YOUR HANDS BEHIND YOUR BACK is funny because which is it? I'll be they look so confused--can I unfreeze to put my hands behind my back? Either way you can just beat the crap out of them for not listening and give your wife a breather for the day.

Thetruthislikepoetry on April 10th, 2026 at 07:00 UTC »

Duran’s union, the Sergeants Benevolent Association, said thousands of officers signed an online petition calling for him to be spared prison.

“Today will forever be the darkest day of our profession,” union president Vincent Vallelong said. Duran’s prison sentence, he said, “puts in the back of a police officer’s mind that they can lose their freedom” for making a split-second decision.

Please show me where the NYPD training manual says to take the actions that Duran took? Please present his training that shows he was trained to throw a cooler at a fleeing moped?