Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., today announced the indictment of DANIEL JEAN, 38; KIRT ACALA, 38; and EDWARD CHOU, 40; for allegedly kidnapping an incapacitated colleague in June 2023 by dragging her body from the loading dock of a post office into the back of a parked postal truck, where JEAN allegedly attempted to rape her. All three defendants are charged in New York State Supreme Court with Kidnapping in the Second Degree and Kidnapping in the Second Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony. JEAN is additionally charged with Attempted Rape in the First Degree, Attempted Sexual Abuse in the First Degree, Sexual Abuse in the First Degree, and Forcible Touching.[1]
“As alleged in this indictment, these three postal workers dragged their incapacitated colleague out of a post office and into a mail truck, where one attempted to rape her,” said District Attorney Bragg. “We take investigations and prosecutions of sexual violence extremely seriously and have the survivor-centered services and resources to help those who have been sexually assaulted. Please call us at 212-335-9373.”
According to court documents and statements made on the record in court, in the late afternoon of June 8, 2023, the coworker attended an after-work birthday celebration for a friend at the East 14th Street post office where she worked with the defendants. Later in the evening, she felt strange, could not control her body, and eventually lost consciousness.
Inside the post office, JEAN slapped and squeezed the victim’s buttocks while she was unable to stand or fully hold her head up. The defendants then dragged her out of the post office and into the back of the truck. Inside the truck, JEAN allegedly attempted to rape her.
NYPD officers responded to a 911 call and found ALCALA and CHOU sitting in the front seats of the truck, where they initially refused to open the back. Police heard banging sounds and calls for help from inside, and eventually JEAN stepped out of the back of the truck with his pants unzipped. The victim was found in the back of the truck with her pants undone.
The Manhattan D.A.’s Office and the NYPD, in collaboration with the USPS Inspector General’s Office, opened an investigation that led to today’s arrests.
Assistant D.A.s Mirah Curzer and Samatha Levitz are handling the prosecution of the case under the supervision of Assistant D.A.s Vanessa Puzio, Bethany Spiro, and Kaitlyn Flatley (Deputy Chiefs of the Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Bureau) and Maxine Rosenthal (Senior Counsel to the Special Victims Division), and Executive Assistant D.A. Justin McNabney (Chief of the Special Victims Division). Analyst Katherine Burke is providing valuable assistance.
D.A. Bragg thanked the Northeast Area Field Office, USPS Office of Inspector General, and NYPD Detective Marvin Pinnock of the Manhattan Special Victims Squad.
Defendant Information:
DANIEL JEAN
Charges:
- Attempted Rape in the First Degree, a class B felony, one count
- Kidnapping in the Second Degree, a class B felony, one count
- Kidnapping in the Second Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony, a class B felony, one count
- Sexual Abuse in the First Degree, a class D felony, one count
- Attempted Sexual Abuse in the First Degree, a class E felony, one count
- Forcible Touching, a class A misdemeanor, one count
KIRT ACALA
Charges:
- Kidnapping in the Second Degree, a class B felony, one count
- Kidnapping in the Second Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony, a class B felony, one count
EDWARD CHOU
Charges:
- Kidnapping in the Second Degree, a class B felony, one count
- Kidnapping in the Second Degree as a Sexually Motivated Felony, a class B felony, one count