A 24-year-old Port Chester man is behind bars at the Westchester County Jail after Rye police say a month-long detective investigation tied him to an incident involving a 14-year-old girl at Rye Town Park. Manuel Lazala was arrested on September 1 and now faces two counts of sexual abuse in the third degree and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child.
According to the Yonkers Times, the City of Rye Police Department announced the arrest after its Detective Bureau spent a month working the case, which stemmed from an incident involving a juvenile at Rye Town Park. Police say Lazala was processed and arraigned at Rye Police Department headquarters before being transported to the Westchester County Jail.
The victim's age was not disclosed in the police department's announcement, which described her only as a juvenile in order to protect her privacy. The station's report notes that further details will not be released at this time to safeguard her identity. It was local outlet The Rye Record that later reported the juvenile involved was a 14-year-old girl.
Jurisdiction Explains Why Rye Police Handled a Port Chester Resident's Case
Lazala lists a Port Chester address, but the arrest and investigation fell to City of Rye police because the alleged conduct occurred within city limits at Rye Town Park, a 62-acre waterfront space on Long Island Sound jointly owned and operated by the Town of Rye and the City of Rye. Port Chester is its own incorporated village sitting within the Town of Rye, while the City of Rye split off as a separate, independent municipality back in 1942, according to the Town of Rye. That distinct municipal history is why a Port Chester resident accused of a crime on city-owned parkland was investigated and arrested by City of Rye police rather than a Port Chester force.
Lazala is scheduled to return to Rye City Court on September 8. As with all defendants, he is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
Second Serious Sex Case Tied to the Same Park in Recent Years
This is not the first time Rye Town Park has been the scene of a serious sex crime prosecution. In August 2023, the Westchester County District Attorney's Office indicted a 21-year-old Port Chester man for tackling and sexually assaulting a 16-year-old jogger at the same park, a case in which a security guard interrupted the attack and Rye police apprehended the suspect, according to the Westchester County District Attorney's Office.
What the Misdemeanor Charges Carry Under New York Law
Sexual abuse in the third degree, the charge Lazala faces twice, is classified as a Class B misdemeanor under New York Penal Law Section 130.55, carrying up to 90 days in jail and a fine of as much as $500, per the New York State Senate. His two counts of endangering the welfare of a child fall under Penal Law Section 260.10(1), a Class A misdemeanor that can bring up to a year in jail and as much as three years of probation.
A conviction on the sexual abuse count could also require Lazala to register as a sex offender under New York's Sex Offender Registration Act, according to Riebling & Payton, PLLC. Sex offender risk levels under that law are determined at a separate court hearing that follows any conviction. It remains unclear whether prosecutors will seek to add or upgrade charges before Lazala's return to Rye City Court, or whether bail was addressed at his initial arraignment.
The case adds to a string of recent public safety incidents that have put the City of Rye Police Department in the local spotlight, including a Narcan save that revived an unresponsive young man in late August and a foot chase that sent officers swarming the Theall Road corridor earlier that month.
