Accused of Groping a Woman at Town of Cortland Dog Park
By Dan Murphy
Last week, Westchester County Police reported on the arrest of Robert McCain, 64, of Verplank, on the charge of forcible touching. McCain is charged with groping a woman on July 5 at the Town of Cortlandt’s dog park on Sprout Brook Road.
An unidentified female contacted police after accusing McCain of unwanted advances and touching at the Cortland Dog Park. McCain and his accuser are identified as being “fleeting acquaintances” who knew each other somehow before the incident.
An investigation by Westchester County Police resulted in McCain’s arrest and detention at the County jail pending a $25,000 bond.
Robert McCain has a serious criminal history in our area. In 1981, he was convicted of the 1980 murder of 16-year-old Paul Bohovesky in Rockland County.
McCain and another man, Richard LaBarbera, attacked Bohovesky as she was walking home from a library in Pearl River. Paula was brutally killed and abused by both men, who were found guilty of 2nd degree murder and given life sentences in 1981. They were eligible for parole starting in 2005 after serving 25 years.
McCain’s attempts at parole were denied for years until the New York State Parole Board released him in 2021, despite pleas from the Rockland community to keep him behind bars.
McCain’s first court date on this recent charge was on July 28, where County Court Judge Robert Pricso presided. McCain appeared remotely from the county jail, where he has remained since his arrest.
McCain’s attorney, Robert Nachamie, said his client is not happy after being returned to prison and has stated that he is innocent of the latest charges. But McCain also declared his innocence time and again before the parole board in the death of Bohovesky.
Legendary Rockland County Detective Peter Modafferi recalled that McCain confessed to the murder of Bohovesky during an interrogation in the State of Arkansas in 2021.
The calls for McCain to be denied parole were loud in 2021, and calls for the parole board to resign were loud after McCain’s release.
Now those same calls are back. County Executive Ed Day said, “We fought tooth and nail to keep this egregious killer, Robert McCain, behind bars — where he belonged — for the brutal and unspeakable murder of 16-year-old Paula Bohovesky. The decision by the New York State Parole Board to release him ignored the pleas of our entire community and disregarded the irreversible devastation caused to Paula’s family, turning its back on justice itself.
“Now, this monster — as predicted – committed another crime, underscoring how the system failed. The crime McCain stands accused of is on the hands of every Parole Board member who voted to free him.
“If any of the individuals responsible for that disgraceful decision remain on the Parole Board, I am again calling on them to resign immediately.
“Their actions put the public at risk, and I will never stop fighting for justice — not just for Paula, but for every Rockland resident who expects safety, accountability, and a system that values the lives of victims over the comfort of criminals,” said Day.
Congressman Mike Lawler said, “This disgraceful and utterly predictable incident highlights precisely why Robert McCain never should have been granted parole. The entire Parole Board should resign in disgrace immediately – their constant release of child rapists, cop-killers, and the worst criminals has made New York less safe.
McCain previously met all the conditions of his parole; he never failed a drug test, and probation officers never found any contraband during several unannounced searches of his home, according to court officials.
Judge Robert Prisco ruled that McCain could be released from jail if he could post his bail.
Legally, his only option is because he has not demonstrated that he was a “substantial risk” to the community.
Prisco also denied a request for an electronic monitoring device
Right now, McCain’s bail is $25,000, a number he likely cannot raise, but his attorneys are looking to lower the bail.
