NYPD cop cleared of assault charge after caught-on-camera clash with unruly Apple Store customer
An NYPD officer accused of punching an unruly man inside an Upper West Side Apple Store three years ago has been cleared of the charges, police union reps announced Thursday.
Manhattan prosecutors had charged Officer Salvatore Provenzano with third-degree assault for hitting the man while Provenzano was trying to remove him from the store at 1981 Broadway in a caught-on-camera clash in October 2021.
In a statement, PBA President Patrick Hendry said Provenzano was “simply doing his job” by protecting the public from a repeat offender — as the labor boss took a jab at Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg for even indicting him in the first place.
“We’re grateful that the court recognized that reality and acquitted him, but unfortunately, a lot of damage has been done,” Hendry said “A good, hardworking cop has been sidelined for nearly a year, and police officers across this borough are wondering if their careers will also be derailed by baseless charges.
“Manhattan prosecutors need to stop wasting time and resources targeting cops over nonsense and start working with us to address real public safety issues.”
Prosecutors had offered to knock down the charge to second-degree harassment, which would have kept the officer out of jail and without a criminal record.
But Provenzano — a 17-year veteran of the force — rejected the deal, pleaded not guilty and took his chances with a judge trial.
“My client’s gratified that the judge saw through this and realized this was not an assault case at all — this was just an officer defending himself from what he thought was an aggressive action by the individual he was dealing with,” Stu London, Provenzano’s defense attorney, told The Post on Thursday.
“It was a very minor case that, unfortunately, the Manhattan DA’s office turned into much more than it ever was,” he continued, adding that the man Provenzano struggled with had no injuries from the punch.
“I just question why the Manhattan DA even brought this case in the first place.”
But despite the acquittal, Acting Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Maxwell Wiley told the court that prosecutors weren’t wrong to bring the case, according to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
“We work in close partnership with the NYPD every day, and I have immense respect for the officers in uniform,” DA Alvin Bragg said in a statement. “I thank our prosecutors for their hard work, and Judge Wiley for his careful and thoughtful consideration of this matter.”
Provenzano allegedly struck the man in the caught-on-bodycam confrontation after he tried to pull away from the officer during a struggle.
The man was also the subject of a complaint that day, but the case has since been sealed.
Bragg’s office convened a grand jury, which later indicted Provenzano on a third-degree assault charge, which is punishable by up to a year in prison.
Prosecutors offered to lower the charges down because Provenzano only threw one shot, the victim didn’t suffer any severe injuries and the officer had no history of violence.
But the officer brushed that away.
“My client truly believed he was about to be struck – and there was one punch,” London told the court last July.
London also claimed the alleged victim had gone after store security before and been barred from at least one other Apple Store.
“All this officer did was attempt to escort [the man] out of the location,” London added at a press conference outside the courthouse.
“As he puts his hand on his elbow to have him leave, [the man] immediately flings his arm back and tenses his body, and this officer reasonably thought he was gonna be struck, and he hits him one time, and he goes down with no injuries at all.”
