Bronx State Senator Luis Sepulveda turns in after assault accusation from wife

Robert Press

State Senator Luis Sepúlveda has turned himself in at the 48th Precinct facing charges that he assaulted his wife.

It was reported that his wife Elizabeth called 911 Saturday shortly after the senator who is running for Bronx Borough President finished a virtual candidates forum.

The incident had occurred in their West Farms apartment where both said to police that the other had assaulted them. It was rumored that the reason Sepulveda's wife went to Florida previously was because of a domestic dispute, but she returned to the Bronx a short time later.

He became a State Senator in April of 2018 replacing Ruben Diaz Sr. who left the State Senate to become a City Councilman.

Senator Sepulveda is known for his work in Criminal Justice reforms, sponsoring the Green Light Bill which granted drivers licenses to undocumented immigrants in New York State.

He chairs the Senate Committee on Crime Victims and Corrections, but Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart Cousins said that Senator Sepulveda would be removed as the chair, and stripped of all his committee assignments.

She added that the situation will be monitored, and that she takes these allegations extremely seriously.

In January 2020 the State Senate received a thirteen page packet from Senator Sepulveda's older brother who is incarcerated in a Florida jail after being convicted in 1998 of importation of Cocaine, Marijuana, and Hashish oil.

The senator denied the claims stating they are false, and that his brother is in a difficult place in his life. The charges were not substantiated by the Ethics Committee chaired By Senator Biaggi.

Marvin Ray Raskin said, "Mr. Sepulveda has been the victim of recurring physical violence by his estranged spouse for approximately nine years, a situation he has endured because of the young child they share together.

"This false accusation is a calculated attempt by a disgruntled party to leverage a divorce settlement from a case she filed in Florida this past November.”

"All allegations must be taken seriously and investigated to the full extent of the law, which is why the Senator is committed to and will proactively provide full transparency as this matter is resolved.

"The issues raised must see the full light of day, and we are confident that when the true history of the relationship is understood, the facts that present themselves will clear his name," he added.