Man Charged with Shooting NY Officer in Face Monday was Released on Gun Charge in July

The man who shot and wounded a Yonkers, NY, police officer got a pass earlier this year from a Bronx judge who allowed him back on the street after a gun charge.

Frank Valencia, 18, of New Rochelle was one of two people arrested for shooting Yonkers officer Kayla Maher, 26, in the chin Monday at about 8 p.m.

Hours earlier, he’d missed a court appearance in New Rochelle — on charges he’d threatened his father with a gun, sources said. After failing to appear in court Monday, a bench warrant was issued for his arrest, the New York Daily News reports.

Valencia, a drug dealer with 23 prior arrests, was arrested in New York City on May 31 when officers found him there carrying a duffel bag. He had a gun in his waistband, and nearly 500 rounds of ammunition for .22-caliber pistol a 9-mm pistol and a shotgun, sources said.

On July 5, Bronx Supreme Court Judge George Villegas granted him youthful offender status on the charges — over the objections of a Bronx prosecutor.

Valencia pleaded guilty and he was sentenced to five years probation.