EAST ELMHURST — Two Rikers Island correction officers were indicted on Friday for beating a teenage inmate inside a supply closet and later lying about the attack, prosecutors said.
Captain Medzid Kolenovic, 40, an 8-year veteran for the Department of Correction, and Correction Officer Jean Destine, 42, who's been on the job since 2006, were hit with a 16-count indictment for the Dec. 2014 assault of Ambirorix Celedino, 18, according to the Bronx District Attorney's office.
The two pleaded not guilty to the charges, the DA said.
On Dec. 9, 2014, Celedino was eating lunch when he got into a verbal argument with Kolenovic, prosecutors said. The captain took Celedino inside a supply closet — where there are no security cameras — and Destine followed the two.
When they left, Celedino's face was badly bruised and bloodied, prosecutors said.
In written reports of the brawl, Kolenovic and Destine claimed Celedino was the aggressor. Kolenovic also reported injuries to his hands and filed for Workers Compensation benefits for injuries to his face and torso, the DA said.
Kolenovic and Destine turned themselves into police on Friday and were charged with assault, official misconduct, falsifying business records, offering a false instruments for filing and official misconduct, the DA said.
They were released without bail after their arraignment and face up to four years in prison if convicted.
