Alicia Eriole, the 31-year-old Schenectady woman charged for her role in the June 16, 2023 shooting of State Trooper Richard Albert of Cobleskill during a traffic stop on I-88, pleaded guilty to second-degree criminal facilitation Friday in Schenectady County Court.
In her plea, Eriole agreed to a sentence of 4-12 years in state prison.
She will be sentenced on December 5.
In recounting the event, Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney said Eriole was the driver of a Honda Pilot “during a chaotic series of events that began with a vehicle and traffic stop” and involved not only the shooting of Trooper Albert, but also a carjacking, several related vehicle collisions, and an extensive manhunt for Eriole’s then-boyfriend, Nelson Troche.
Shortly after 11am on June 16, Trooper Albert stopped the Honda Pilot for going over 110 miles an hour heading east on I-88 in the Town of Duanesburg.
As Trooper Albert approached the vehicle, Troche, who was in the passenger seat, reached across the driver, Eriole, and extended his gun out of the driver’s window aiming at the Trooper and fired the gun, a bullet hitting him in the left shoulder.
The shooting of Trooper Albert caused a passing pickup truck to stop suddenly to avoid the gunfire.
That pickup truck was then rear-ended by a log truck tractor trailer.
As Eriole and Troche attempted to drive away from the scene, the driver of the log truck intentionally struck the Honda Pilot, disabling it.
Eriole and Troche then fled from the Honda Pilot and forced the driver of the pickup that had been rear-ended out of the truck at gun point.
Despite being badly wounded, Trooper Albert continued to pursue Eriole and Troche, including exchanging gunfire with Troche as Eriole attempted to drive away in the damaged pickup truck.
The pickup proved too damaged to drive and Eriole and Troche fled into the brush on the side of I-88.
Eriole was quickly taken into custody, but Troche was able to flee into the wooded area off of Darby Hill Road in Duanesburg.
As New York State Troopers and other responding officers began to close in on his location, Troche committed suicide.
Eriole was originally charged with robbery and weapons possession in addition to the criminal facilitation charge to which she pled guilty.
As part of her plea, Eriole admitted to providing assistance to Troche in the moments prior to the shooting, and agreed to a sentence of 4-12 years in state prison.
Eriole had been scheduled to begin a jury trial on Monday, September 30.
Schenectady County Judge Mark Caruso presided over the plea; Eriole was represented by attorney Joseph Gardner.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Peter Willis.
“Ms. Eriole was not armed and there is no proof that she helped plan the shooting, but at every step of the way she helped her boyfriend, including by reclining her driver’s seat to enable Mr. Troche to reach across and shoot Trooper Albert,” said District Attorney Carney.
“On behalf of our community, I commend Trooper Albert for his actions that day. Throughout this terrifying encounter, Trooper Albert acted with courage, resilience and professionalism. We are all fortunate that he is today alive and well.”