Mount Vernon Police Department Suspends Five Following Van Shooting

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 23, 2025

Mount Vernon, NY - The Mount Vernon Police Department announced today that five department members have been suspended following the investigation of an in-

custody shooting that occurred on October 16, 2025, inside a police prisoner transport van.

At the time, five prisoners were being transported to the Westchester County Jail by two MVPD officers, Officers Omar Bryce and Sonjea Collins. The officers reported hearing a

single gunshot from the rear of the van, followed by a prisoner claiming he had been shot.

The van returned immediately to police headquarters, where personnel secured the prisoners and recovered a .22-caliber Rohm-RGT revolver from one of them, Louis Soto.

The department is reviewing all circumstances surrounding the incident. Based on our established training, policies, and procedures, early findings indicate that the firearm

should have been detected during arrest or intake. While a 2022 policy update limited the broad use of strip searches, a properly conducted frisk or authorized strip search

should have revealed the weapon.

Failure to do so has resulted in disciplinary action by the Mount Vernon Police Department. In consultation with legal counsel, five department members directly involved in

Soto's arrest or processing have been suspended without pay for 30 days pending the outcome of the ongoing investigation:

• Sergeant Joseph Diaz
• Police Officer Cody Housen
• Police Officer Christian Pacheco
• Police Officer Sonjea Collins
• Police Officer Omar Bryce

These suspensions are not final determinations of disciplinary outcomes. The internal investigation remains active, and additional findings or disciplinary actions may be

forthcoming as the review continues.