Queens DA Gaslit Astoria Woman Over Blackmailing Cop Case: Suit

ASTORIA, QUEENS — Queens prosecutors let the cop who illegally filmed and blackmailed an Astoria woman walk free so they could pursue prostitution charges against the NYPD sergeant assigned to investigate his case, a new civil petition contends.

Valentina Veleva this week accused the Queens District Attorney's office of torpedoing the case against Officer Miguel Delacruz to pursue charges against investigator Sgt. Cliff Nieves for his alleged ties to a multi-million dollar "prostitution empire," court records show.

Veleva argued District Attorney Melinda Katz should have handed the case to a special prosecutor and demanded a Queens Supreme Court judge to appoint one to investigate Veleva's claims, according to the petition filed Monday.

"Justice cannot be served when a district attorney is put in a position where they are aware of a conflict of interest, in an otherwise meritorious criminal case, and the conflict is not ethically resolved," the petition claims.

"How do we protect the integrity and confidence in our criminal justice system when the elected district attorney fails to properly recuse herself?"

The Queens District Attorney's press office did not respond to requests for comment from Patch.

The petition, however, includes the transcript from a recorded conversation with Assistant District Attorney James Liander, who admitted to Veleva she'd been misled about why they chose not to charge Delacruz, the petition contends.

"We couldn’t tell you…you have to understand that," Liander allegedly said. "It was the same unit that was going after Nieves that was handling your complaint."

Veleva's battle with the justice system began in 2017 when she brought claims against Delacruz — whom she says boasted of filming about 50 women without permission — to investigators with the NYPD and Queens District Attorney's office.

Veleva and Delacruz had hooked up in his Jackson Heights home in March 2017 and she only found out he was married when she tried to call the next day, according to a Patch report from 2019.

Delacruz, angry at being contacted, threatened to share videos of Veleva performing oral sex, which he'd taken without her permission, she said.

"He told me he had cameras that recorded my ass and I better keep my mouth shut," Veleva told Patch. Delacruz then allegedly sent her a video with a message: "Got more."

Veleva demanded prosecutors charge Delacruz with unlawful surveillance under New York penal law, which bans recording naked people without consent, the petition contends.

"A person who abuses, they always escalate, because they think they can get away with that," Veleva later said of her decision to pursue charges. "I was so proud that I did the right thing."

But prosecutors almost immediately dropped the case then tried to convince Veleva she'd misinterpreted the law and Delacruz, as a participant in the video, was able to provide legal consent for them both, according to the petition.

Veleva noted New York law allows for one-party consent except in cases when the person filmed is naked, dressing or undressing, or has a reasonable expectation of privacy.

But an NYPD captain would confirm to Veleva in November 2021 that Queens prosecutors closed her case sometime around March 15, 2017, essentially the same day it was opened, the suit contends.

A Queens District Attorney's official later told Patch that they did not pursue charges against Delacruz because New York's revenge porn ban had not yet been enacted.

Veleva disputes this assessment of the case because she did not file charges under New York's revenge porn law which criminalizes the disseminate, or spread, of intimate videos taken with or without consent.

But, in September 2018, the Queens DA's Office announced charges against Nieves — an Internal Investigations Bureau officer among those who handled Veleva's case — whom they accused of participating in a multi-million dollar prostitution ring with a slew of NYPD officials.

It was then a Queens assistant district attorney admitted to Veleva his office avoided charging Delacruz because they'd been investigating Nieves, which the petition argues was a dereliction of their duty to admit to a conflict of interest.

"Instead of ignoring Petitioner’s complaint for over seventeen months, members of QDA should have sought the appointment of a special district attorney," the petition states.

"[The office's] failure to seek a special district attorney pursuant to County Law § 701 resulted in several QDA attorneys, supervisors, and executive members of DA Katz’ current administration, engaging in unethical, unprofessional, insulting, and derogatory conduct."

The insulting conduct alleged in the complaint includes comments from Assistant District Attorney Gerard Brave, made in October 2020, who told Veleva he believed she'd lied about giving consent to be filmed.

“Brave exhibited a very sexist and male chauvinistic opinions by completely crediting the male perpetrator’s version of the facts over a female victim’s assertions," the petition states."Brave acts more like PO Delacruz’ criminal defense attorney than an executive member of DA Katz’ team."

This story has been updated to include more contextual information about New York penal law pertaining to consent and recording.