John Murphy, Rockville Centre detective, charged with hate crime in Manorville, authorities say

A Rockville Centre police detective has been charged with a hate crime after authorities said he harassed a cellular service worker, damaging his vehicle while using a racial slur, Suffolk County authorities said Wednesday.

Det. John Murphy, 40, of Manorville, was charged with two counts of criminal mischief as a hate crime and one count of aggravated harassment in the Nov. 3 incident in which the detective, who is white, confronted the worker, a Black man, and allegedly damaged his vehicle and caused debris to hit his face, Suffolk police and prosecutors said.

Murphy, appearing Wednesday in a gray suit in First District Court in Central Islip following his arrest just before 6 a.m., was released on his own recognizance by Judge Bernard Cheng. The judge also issued an order of protection on behalf of the cell service worker, prohibiting Murphy from contacting the victim.

Prosecutors said the worker was performing maintenance on a nearby 5G tower when he was confronted by Murphy, who told him "we don't want your kind around here" and called him a racial slur. Authorities did not identify the victim.

Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said the accusation against Murphy was corroborated by a third-party witness. He declined to elaborate on who that person is.

Tierney also said there is video evidence of the encounter, though that video does not contain audio.

The district attorney called the incident "incredibly disappointing."

"This [type of] case is disappointing anytime, but when a public official, especially a police officer, is involved, it's especially disconcerting," Tierney said at a media availability Wednesday afternoon. "Hate has no home in Suffolk County and, if you commit a crime such as that in Suffolk County, we will prosecute."

According to a felony complaint filed in Suffolk District Court, Murphy told the victim: "Get out of here, we don't want you or your like in the neighborhood."

Murphy then grabbed the amber light on top of the victim's 2023 white GMC Terrain and allegedly "broke the wire and threw the amber light toward the complainant, hitting the driver side door, causing the amber light to break into pieces and hitting the complainant's left cheek," the document said.

Murphy pleaded not guilty.

Defense attorney Anthony DiFiore, of White Plains, said his client is a Marine veteran. He said Murphy surrendered to Suffolk police Wednesday.

Murphy and his attorney declined to comment as they left court Wednesday.

Murphy, who has worked in the Rockville Centre Police Department for 15 years, was suspended Wednesday morning, Suffolk police said. It’s unclear if Murphy was suspended with or without pay.

Suffolk County Executive Edward P. Romaine said the police department has investigated 17 hate crimes and 68 hate incidents so far this year.

"I don’t care what your status is in life," Romaine said. "This gentleman happened to be a detective in Rockville Centre. But that doesn’t excuse hate," he said. "Hate has no place in Suffolk County."

A spokeswoman for the Village of Rockville Centre, Julie Grilli, declined to comment when asked about Murphy's employment status.

"The Village of Rockville Centre does not comment on personnel matters," she said.

Police said the incident occurred Nov. 3 at about 7 p.m., when Murphy approached a subcontractor for a cellular company as he worked in a GMC Terrain at the corner of Sylvan Court and Weeks Avenue in Manorville. Police said Murphy questioned what the subcontractor was doing in the area, then identified himself as "a law enforcement officer" — but "refused to look at the worker's credentials."

Acting Suffolk Police Commissioner Robert Waring, speaking to reporters after an unrelated news conference at Long Island MacArthur Airport, said the victim was testing the strength of cellular signals in the area when he was approached by Murphy on foot and asked what he was doing.

"The man began yelling at him and at some point indicated that he was a member of law enforcement," Waring said.

The victim drove around the corner and dialed 911, prompting an investigation by the department’s Hate Crimes Unit, which included a neighborhood canvass and video surveillance, Waring said.