WILMINGTON — The Wilmington Police Department has launched an internal affairs investigation into officers who handled the apparent hit and run of Wilmington resident Vincent Iventosch.
In February, officer Mark Anderson responded to a call at the Might as Well Bar and Restaurant. When he arrived on the scene, he found Iventosch had been run over, and dragged by a driver in the parking lot.
The driver of the vehicle had apparently fled the scene and would not be heard from until the next day. The Wilmington Police Department has not made any arrests in the case. According to the department, District Attorney Ben David’s office decided charges were not warranted based on the police’s investigation.
“We are aware of the recent inquiries regarding the Vincent Iventosch case. After completing the investigation, our officers submitted the case for review to the District Attorney’s Office who determined that the case did not warrant criminal charges,” Wilmington Police Spokeswoman Linda Thompson said.
According to David, the Wilmington Police Department did not provide sufficient evidence to bring forward the charges of hit and run.
“Not every accident is a crime. The offense of felony hit-and-run requires proof that the driver knew or should have known that he (she) hit someone AND that physical injury likely occurred,” David said, “Two of my senior prosecutors reviewed the case and determined that there was not sufficient evidence to prove all the elements of this offense beyond a reasonable doubt, so criminal charges were not warranted.”
However, questions about the WPD investigation have been raised.
Listen now: Wilmington Police officers interview Vincent Iventosch shortly after he was released from surgery. Iventosch was run over and dragged through a parking lot.
A recording made during a police interview with Iventsoch by his fiancée has led to concerns about at least two officers involved in the investigation. Internal Affairs is now investigating the conduct of those officers.
“In response to a recent complaint filed by the victim in this case, we have launched an internal affairs investigation regarding the handling of this case, including an outside recording of an interview between our officers and the victim. Certain comments made during the interview are being reviewed as well,” Thompson said.
Thompson did not provide specifics about the IA investigation. However, the recording of Iventosch’s interview includes comments made by officers giving derogatory nicknames to witnesses, including “semi-gay guy,” and “pain in the (expletive),” as well as an apparent attempt to elicit a statement of responsibility from Iventosch, suggesting to him that he was responsible for the incident.
At the time of the interview, Inventosch had just been released from surgery for injuries sustained while being run over and was apparently administered painkillers while police continued to question him.
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