Eric Bohler, a 33-year-old Peekskill resident who serves as a captain with the Verplanck Fire District, has been arrested and charged with first-degree sexual abuse involving contact by forcible compulsion. He was arraigned in Town of Cortlandt Court and remanded to the Westchester County Jail, with bail set at $25,000 cash, a $100,000 bond, or a $250,000 partially secured bond.
According to News 12 Hudson Valley, New York State Police reported that the 33-year-old Peekskill man was arrested and that a victim had reported Bohler inappropriately touched them multiple times against their will. The station said it contacted the Verplanck Fire Department for comment but received no response.
Court documents cited by The Journal News/lohud allege that Bohler forcibly touched a woman on October 4 in the parking lot of the firehouse on 8th Street, doing so “after repeatedly being told no.” The outlet also reported that the arrest took place on October 20, while News 12's reporting identified the arrest date as October 21 — the two accounts differ on the exact day. The first-degree sexual abuse charge Bohler faces is a Class D felony punishable by up to seven years in state prison, the same report notes.
How the Investigation Unfolded
Per Daily Voice, the investigation began on October 5, after a victim reported that Bohler had repeatedly touched them inappropriately without their consent in Cortlandt. That timeline places the report roughly a day after the alleged parking lot encounter described in the criminal complaint. A stay-away order of protection has since been issued on behalf of the victim, the outlet reported.
Within the Verplanck Fire District, Bohler held significant rank. The lohud report notes that Bohler was currently the second-highest-ranking officer in the volunteer department, with the assistant fire chief position vacant at the time of his arrest. Whether Bohler remains on active duty with the department has not been confirmed.
Next Court Date Set for Monday
Bohler is scheduled to return to Town of Cortlandt Court on Monday, October 26, at 10 a.m., according to the same Daily Voice report. No outcome of that hearing, nor any plea in the case, has yet been reported. Under New York law, sexual abuse in the first degree is classified as a Class D felony, according to the New York State Senate's penal code.
The case was also confirmed in a statement from the New York State Police, which reported the arrest of the 33-year-old Peekskill man on the first-degree sexual abuse charge. Further details about the victim's identity and relationship to Bohler have not been disclosed, and no additional information about the department's internal response has been made public.
