PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                

MEDIA CONTACT:

February 13, 2026                                                                                                         

Emily Klinkenborg

Public Relations Coordinator klinkenborge@rocklandda.org

O: 845.638.5080 | C: 845.825-5650

NEW CITY, N.Y. – District Attorney Thomas E. Walsh II announced that former Rockland County Corrections Officer John Kezek, 40, of Anderson County, Tennessee, was sentenced to two consecutive one-year terms in Rockland County Jail before the Honorable Robert. J. Prisco, Feb. 13, 2026.

In October 2025, Kezek, formerly from Florida, New York, was accused of falsifying drug test results in Tennessee after allegedly ingesting CBD gummies and purchasing urine. Kezek had previously been arrested and convicted in Tennessee for misdemeanor assault in July 2024.

The defendant was currently serving five years of probation after pleading guilty to Tampering with Public Records in the First Degree on Dec. 22, 2021 and was awaiting sentence related to an April 2023 plea of guilty to the charges of Unlawful Imprisonment in the First Degree and Forcible Touching. The two cases involved sexually harassing inmates at the Rockland County Correctional Facility, falsifying jail log entries regarding his activities as a corrections officer with the Rockland County Sheriff’s Office during the 2019 calendar year, and offenses against a separate female.

The probation sentence related to the December 2021 plea was transferred to Tennessee in late 2024.

As a result of the new arrest, the People recommended 1-3 years in state prison for violating probation on the Tampering felony charge, as well as a sentence of 1-3 years in state prison for the Unlawful Imprisonment and Forcible Touching charges.

The court imposed one year for each of the felony charges to run consecutively.

“When an individual demonstrates the unwillingness to follow court orders, the justice system must respond appropriately to protect the integrity of the process,” said District Attorney Walsh. “Violations of probation are taken seriously by my Office, and when court orders are disregarded, meaningful consequences are necessary.”

This investigation was conducted by the Rockland County District Attorney’s Office Special

Investigations Unit and Special Victims Unit.

One South Main Street · Suite 500 · New City, NY 10956 · (845) 638-5001 · Fax (845) 638-5298 · rocklandcountyda.com

The cases were prosecuted by First Assistant District Attorney Kathleen Devlin.