A Brooklyn man who impersonated a cop was sentenced up to 32 years to life in prison Monday, Sept. 12, for the rape and robbery of a woman at the Sunset Park Hotel.
The victim said she came face to face with the “devil,” according to Oren Yaniv, a spokesman for the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office.
Two years ago, Jason Forgetta, 39, of Ditmas Park, Brooklyn, was convicted of three counts of predatory sexual assault, second-degree strangulation as a sexually motivated felony, third-degree robbery and first-degree criminal impersonation in a jury trial.
Starting in the 1990s, Forgetta was arrested on several charges. The defendant was a level-3 sex offender for a prior rape conviction.
“This serial sex offender is a clear and present danger to all women and must not be allowed to be out on our streets,” said Brooklyn DA Ken Thompson in a statement. “[A] lengthy prison sentence ensures that he will never be able to harm anyone else.”
At approximately 2 a.m., July 30, 2014, the victim was walking in the street outside 517 39th St., in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, when the defendant stopped his car, presented a police badge and initiated a conversation, the press release said. The victim, 26, who was a sex worker at the time of the assault, agreed to accompany the defendant to a room she rented at the Sunny 39 Hotel.
In the room, the defendant told the victim she was under arrest, shoved her against the wall, put a pillow over her head and raped her.
The defendant than ordered the victim to take a shower to, “wash all the DNA” off. He stole the victim’s wallet, cellphone and undergarments. As the defendant exited the hotel room, the victim ran after him. She was able to note the defendant’s license plate, which led to his arrest. Officers discovered a fake police badge in the defendant’s vehicle.
Prosecutor and Assistant District Attorney Lisa Nugent agreed with the DA’s statements. The defendant deserves a life sentence for “terrorizing” the citizens of Brooklyn, she said.