- "I don't like paperwork but I'd rather get a paper cut on my finger than a bullet in my ass."
- ―Rafael Scarfe to Misty Knight[src]
Rafael "Rafe" Scarfe was a hard-nosed detective of the New York City Police Department and the partner of Misty Knight. Due to his personal tragedy as well as a long and difficult career, Scarfe had become a corrupt cop who carried out Cottonmouth's dirty work, including killing witnesses of Cottonmouth's crimes. When Scarfe saw an opportunity to make a lot of money by turning against his employer, Scarfe tried to blackmail Cottonmouth, only to be shot in the gut. As a result, Scarfe went to Luke Cage and confessed his crimes in exchange for Cage's protection, giving his statement to Knight before eventually dying of his wounds.
Biography
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Early Life
Meeting Misty Knight
- "A lot of people wrote me off back then. But not Scarfe. He took me under his wing. He taught me how to police for real. I have no idea what he saw in me back then, but he has had my front and my back."
- ―Misty Knight to Perez[src]
Rafael Scarfe, a humorous member of the Harlem station, decided to mentor rookie detective Misty Knight when she was promoted from beat cop to detective, as no other detectives wanted to do it. Over time, Knight and Scarfe became good partners and close friends.[3]
Losing a Child
One night, Rafael's son Earl found his father's loaded pistol at their home, resulting in him shooting and killing himself. This event changed Scarfe's attitude a lot, with his partner Misty Knight noticing that Scarfe may make a lot of jokes but he never smiled.[3]
Fall from Grace
Scarfe eventually became a corrupt cop, taking bribes from Cornell Stokes, a scion of the Harlem Stokes crime family. Knight remained unaware of her best friend's corruption. Scarfe recorded all his meetings and deals with Cottonmouth, as well as the corruption of his fellow officers such as Perez, a superior officer in the Harlem squadroom.
Assisting Cottonmouth
Hunting the Stolen Guns
In 2015, Scarfe and Knight were operating an operation on Cottonmouth. When a gun deal of Cottonmouth's went wrong, with his and rival gang leader Domingo Colon's men dead, Scarfe and Knight attempted to track down the surviving assailant, Chico Diaz.
When Cottonmouth's aide attempted to kill Diaz, he shot up Harlem 'Switzerland', Pop's Barber Shop. Although Pop died, Luke Cage and a young boy miraculously survived, Diaz was wounded and taken to hospital. At the hospital, Scarfe earned Diaz's trust, he used this as an opportunity to meet with Diaz and kill him for Cottonmouth. He also learned from Diaz that the person busting Cottonmouth's operations was Cage, to whom Diaz had given all his information on Cottonmouth's operations.
Betraying Cottonmouth
Fatal Mistake
Scarfe struggles against Cottonmouth
Rafael met Cottonmouth, because Cottonmouth wanted to ask the guns from Hammer Industries Rafael has promised. But he revealed that he had decided to bribe him for extra money, reminding him that if he did not get his situation sorted with Domingo Colon then his organisation was finished while also noting that all his money was currently in police lock up. Rafael then insulted him by saying that his reputation will be down if Luke Cage is going up. So Cottonmouth lost his temper and fought against Rafael. He quickly disarm Rafael and managed to shot him twice. The wounded Rafael then hid behind a car while Cottonmouth laughed at him and left him alone.
Apology and Death
Scarfe dies making his final confession
- "I'm an asshole! There's no disputing that. I am a despicable human being. But Cottonmouth is a hell of a lot worse!"
- ―Scarfe to Luke Cage[src]
After being shot by Cottonmouth, he went to Pop's Barber Shop. There, he was found by Luke and Claire. And they had a talk for a while, while Claire was trying to treat his wounds. And Luke almost killed Rafael but was prevented by Claire. Then Rafael told Luke about where to find Cottonmouth's data. After Luke found the data, he came back to Pop's Barber Shop. After that, they all decided to go out with a van. While riding a van, they were followed by Cottonmouth's henchmen. So Luke was driving quickly and he found a place to hide. He then asked everyone to hide. But soon they were found by Cottonmouth's henchmen but the van was empty. So Cottonmouth's henchmen decided to find them in a building. Unfortunately, they were found once again. Luke then decided to fight the henchmen while he asked Claire and Rafael to keep on going. Finally, they got out of the building and suddenly Misty Knight came with a car which almost crashed them but Luke blocked the car with his body. And Misty got out of the car and saw Rafael's condition. They had a talk for a while and Rafael apologized to her as Misty mourned her lost partner.
Personality
- "I don't see anything wrong with that."
"A vigilante? Yeah, there's something wrong with that. It's anarchy, a complete breakdown of the system. There are rules and regulations to what we do."
"Yeah, and lawyers and paperwork and excuses. Other than mopping up blood and arresting the same piece of shit over and over, you know, not much we can do as cops."
"Jesus, Scarfe, whose side are you on?"
"I saw the Incident up close. What we can do as cops, what we can't do. Now, unless this sidearm that I'm wearing suddenly turns into some kind of magic hammer, this whole job is irrelevant." - ―Rafael Scarfe and Misty Knight[src]
Rafael Scarfe was a hard-nosed detective. He was also shown to be easily getting tired with people like Misty Knight because of her way to investigate a crime scene as if it really happened now. Sometimes Rafael can work with criminals like Cottonmouth in which he was later caught by Misty to be working with Cottonmouth. But even though he liked to work with criminals, he could also betray them just like what he did to Cottonmouth when he was asked about the guns from Hammer Industries. In which it made him getting shot until he lost a lot of blood causing him to die.
Equipment
Weapons
- Glock 19: Department issue sidearm used by Scarfe.
Relationships
Family
- Earl Scarfe † - Son
Allies
- New York City Police Department
- Misty Knight - Partner
- Claire Temple
- Luke Cage
- Pop †
- Zip †
Enemies
- Wilfredo "Chico" Diaz † - Victim
- Perez - Ally turned Enemy
- Cottonmouth † - Ally turned Killer
Appearances
| Appearances for Rafael Scarfe |
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In chronological order:
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Trivia
- In the comics, Rafael Scarfe was Misty Knight's partner, and an honest police officer until he eventually began to murder criminals that had gotten away with their crimes.
- Scarfe was a vegetarian.[4]
Behind the Scenes
- Matthew R. Staley was a stunt double for Frank Whaley in the role of Rafael Scarfe.
