Manalapan Cop Accused Of Stalking Teen Had Texted 2nd Girl: Prosecutor

MANALAPAN, NJ — A Manalapan police officer accused of stalking a teen girl he met at a National Night Out event in 2023 had inappropriate contact with a second girl, authorities said Thursday.

Kevin Ruditsky, 47, was indicted on 19 counts and accused of engaging in a pattern of illegal behavior with the two girls, Monmouth County Prosecutor Raymond Santiago said.

He has been charged with engaging in a pattern of official misconduct, nine counts of official misconduct, three counts of computer criminal activity, three counts of endangering the welfare of a child, and single counts of hindering apprehension, impersonating a law enforcement officer (while suspended from duty) and stalking, Santiago said.

Ruditsky was arrested and suspended without pay in August 2023 after the prosecutor’s office found he was sending inappropriate messages and photos to one of the victims, who was 16 years old at the time.

According to prosecutors, investigators found that Ruditsky’s conduct with the teen began during Manalapan Township’s 2023 National Night Out event, which is part of an annual community outreach campaign that aims to strengthen the bonds between police and community members.

At the time of the event, Santiago said Ruditsky was in uniform and allowed the teen to sit in his patrol car. Later that day, Ruditsky began sending the victim sexually explicit messages and photos on social media, despite the victim repeatedly informing him of her age.

“That a sworn member of law enforcement would begin to so egregiously violate the public’s trust while in uniform at an event specifically intended to strengthen trust between law enforcement and the public is, in a word, unconscionable,” Santiago has said.

Read more: Manalapan Cop Stalked Teen Girl He Met At Police Event: Prosecutor

Several days after the event, prosecutors said Ruditsky pulled the victim over while she was driving on Route 9, unlawfully handcuffed her and attempted to kiss her while his dash camera and body-worn camera were deactivated.

On a separate occasion, prosecutors said Ruditsky also parked his marked patrol vehicle outside the victim’s home while he was on duty in the middle of the night. This incident occurred after the victim refused to give him her home address.

“The men and women of the Manalapan Township Police Department are and should be held to the highest moral and ethical standards," Manalapan Police Chief Edward Niesz said in a previous statement. "And it troubles me that the actions of one individual can stain the reputation of all of us."

Further investigation into Ruditsky’s actions later revealed that he sent inappropriate messages to a second victim in December 2022. The victim was 17 years old at the time, Santiago said.

Prosecutors also found that Ruditsky conducted “improper lookups” of both victims in a law-enforcement database, which was outside the scope of any legitimate law-enforcement purpose.

Anyone with information about the case or related matters is asked to contact Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office Detective Gregory Hilton II at 800-533-7443.

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• Manalapan Cop Stalked Teen Girl He Met At Police Event: Prosecutor