Couple Charged with Filing False Sexual Assault Allegations Against State Troopers

Investigation finds no evidence to support claims after body camera footage contradicts reports

Two Bloomsbury residents have been criminally charged after allegedly making false reports that New Jersey State Police troopers sexually assaulted one of them during a domestic disturbance response in October, authorities announced Monday.

According to the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, Randal Kelco, 35, and Lisa DeStefano, 45, face second-degree charges of making false reports to law enforcement. The charges stem from an investigation conducted by the Office of Public Integrity and Accountability (OPIA) Corruption Bureau, in cooperation with the New Jersey State Police Office of Professional Standards.

The alleged incident was reported to have occurred in the early hours of October 23, 2023, when three troopers responded to a domestic dispute at the couple’s shared residence on Brunswick Avenue in Bloomsbury, Hunterdon County. Body-worn camera footage captured the approximately 40-minute interaction between the troopers and the two individuals. The video reportedly shows troopers later transporting Kelco to a nearby hotel before leaving the scene.

More than 20 hours later, around 1:30 a.m. on October 24, Kelco and DeStefano sought care at the Emergency Department of Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick. There, they reported that Kelco had been sexually assaulted by the troopers. The New Brunswick Police Department was called to the hospital, and officers interviewed the couple, who repeated their allegations and offered a detailed description of the supposed assault.

A formal complaint was also filed with the NJSP Office of Professional Standards. During a subsequent interview on November 6, 2023, the couple again maintained that the assault had occurred.

However, investigators found that neither the body-worn camera recordings nor cellphone footage provided by Kelco supported the claims. According to the Attorney General’s office, the evidence directly contradicted the couple’s accounts, and no misconduct or assault was evident in the video materials.

“In this case, OPIA followed the evidence, including the body-worn camera video of the officers, which allegedly shows this was a malicious, self-serving hoax by the defendants,” said Attorney General Platkin.

“This case clearly demonstrates how important body-worn camera video evidence can be to understanding events and fact-checking witness statements,” said Eric L. Gibson, Executive Director of OPIA. “In this instance, those recordings provided exculpatory evidence showing these troopers were facing false, inflammatory allegations of criminal conduct.”

Second-degree charges in New Jersey are punishable by five to ten years in state prison and fines of up to $150,000.

The case is being prosecuted by Deputy Attorney General Michael Angermeier of the OPIA Corruption Bureau. Oversight is being provided by Bureau Deputy Chief Laura Croce, Bureau Director Jeffrey J. Manis, and OPIA Executive Director Thomas Eicher.

Officials emphasize that the charges are accusations and both defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.