The Bergen County prosecutor says Ralph Rivera Jr.'s conduct did not rise to a criminal level. Watch video
HACKENSACK - Bergen County Public Safety Director Ralph Rivera Jr. will not be prosecuted for allegedly interfering with a police officer conducting a DWI investigation, the county's prosecutor said Monday.
"Director Rivera's conduct on March 19, 2016 in connection with (Francisco) Almonte's DWI arrest did not rise to the level of criminality," Acting Bergen County Prosecutor Gurbir S. Grewal said in a statement.
Almonte was pulled over in Hackensack for allegedly driving drunk as his wife sat in the passenger seat. Rivera showed up a short time later in a black, unmarked police SUV and approached officers with the Bergen County Sheriff's Office.
On dashcam video, Rivera appears to interfere with the arrest.
"I used to be undersheriff and that's a friend of mine," Rivera is heard saying on the tape.
Arresting Officer Andrew Kara later wrote in his report that Rivera interrupted and distracted him several times.
"At multiple points throughout my stop he kept asserting himself as, and referring to the title that he currently holds," Kara wrote. "I felt overwhelmed after learning Mr. Rivera's identity."
After the incident, Bergen County Executive James J. Tedesco III suspended Rivera with pay and asked the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office to investigate the police director's actions for any criminality.
Grewal said the "BCPO's Confidential Investigations Unit subsequently conducted a thorough investigation of this matter."
"Since Director Rivera is not the executive of a Bergen County law enforcement agency, he is not subject to an internal affairs investigation by the BCPO under the Attorney General's Internal Affairs Guidelines," Grewal said in his statement.
"Director Rivera's conduct on March 19, 2016 is now a Bergen County employment matter," Grewal said.
Prior to serving as police director in Bergen County, Rivera was police director in Trenton.
The prosecutor added that "the charges pending against Mr. Almonte are merely accusations and he is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt."
Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook.