The woman whose false rape allegations put an innocent man behind bars for four years lied because she wanted her friends to feel sorry for her, according to the Post.
Biurny Peguero Gonzalez pleaded guilty to perjury yesterday, confessing that she lied when she said William McCaffrey and two other men raped her at knifepoint after meeting her at an Inwood bar and taking her for a drive. McCaffrey really did take her for a car ride, but according to WCBS, she was "extremely drunk and became scared and hysterical during the ride," so he brought her back to her friends. But when she met her pals, they started arguing with her for ditching them — and the dispute quickly turned violent. According to court documents, when Gonzalez remained upset after the scuffle, one of her friends asked whether she had been raped, and "she replied that she had, because she wanted the group to feel badly."
The documents go on to note: "She specifically said that she was upset with [one friend] after the fight because [the friend] was angry and did not seem to care about her...[Gonzalez] said that once she stated she had been raped and more people became involved, the lie became too big for her to back out of." Gonzalez came forward to authorities after a religious conversion and a marriage, and now faces between two and seven years in prison for lying to a grand jury and lying during her trial, however the Times notes that the judge may sentence her to less time. Though she is a legal resident, the mother of two could also be deported to her native Dominican Republic.
McCaffrey is now out on bail from what would have been a 20-year prison sentence, and is expected to be officially cleared of his charges on Thursday. He praised Gonzalez for coming forward. "I’m just happy to be home," said the 33-year-old construction worker, who has argued his innocence by citing DNA evidence that proved the bite marks on Gonzalez' arm reveal were made by a woman. "It was courageous of her to come forward and finally tell the truth."
