Matthew Murphy, a six-year veteran of the Nassau County Police Department's 8th Precinct on Wantagh Avenue in Levittown, was arrested in Farmingdale on Jan. 31 on another charge of first degree sodomy stemming from an incident that allegedly occurred on August 8 of last year.

According to police, 36-year-old Murphy, a resident of Farmingdale, is accused of pulling over a woman he suspected was driving while under the influence on the Seaford Oyster Bay Expressway in the 8th Precinct while in an unmarked DWI patrol car. Murphy then allegedly sodomized her in return for her release.

This is the second time in one week that Murphy was arrested on first degree sodomy charges. On Jan. 24, he was arrested by the Nassau County Police Department Internal Affairs Unit in conjunction with the Nassau County District Attorney's Office for a Dec. 18, 1999 incident. Allegedly, Murphy ordered a female victim to follow him to a secluded location in the 8th Precinct where he sodomized her. That arrest came after an anonymous phone call was made to the Internal Affairs Unit which provided police with enough information to lead them to Murphy.

Previously, police were unsure whether or not the two incidents were related, and are still looking into why it took five months for the August 8 incident to be further investigated.

Murphy, who had been previously suspended from duty without pay by Police Commissioner William J. Willet after his first arrest, surrendered to the Internal Affairs Unit and District Attorney last Wednesday morning. His hearing is scheduled for next Wednesday, Feb. 14.

Since the August incident was brought to light, police officers on the DWI patrol are no longer permitted to go out in an unmarked police car. It is still permissible for other patrol units to continue using unmarked police vehicles.

In an interview with NBC News last week Murphy said that he had an extramarital affair with the woman who has accused him in the December1999 incident. With his wife sitting next to him, Murphy acknowledged having a sexual encounter with the woman on that date, but he stated that it was consensual. Murphy also denied being involved in the alleged August 2000 incident.