One Chicago’s top 5 new character moments of 2019
By Kari Highman
3. Rojas turns out to be a cop
A One Chicago double-take happened early on this season when we first met Chicago PD rookie Vanessa Rojas—who was actually known for the first half of “Assets” as Nina Rodriguez.
When she first appeared in Chicago PD season 7, Rojas was working undercover as a bartender named Nina. This came as a surprise to Kevin Atwater (LaRoyce Hawkins), who was also undercover to survey the same target Vanessa was: Darius Walker (recurring guest star Michael Beach).
Since he had no idea of her real identity, Atwater initially treated her as a possible suspect. He roped Rojas, as Nina, into a drug buy with Detective Jay Halstead (Jesse Lee Soffer). The trio met up with one of Rojas’s “associates” and the meet was set.
When the time came, the whole Intelligence Unit was surprised when other cops came barging onto the scene, as it exposed their entire operation. Before they knew it, guns were drawn, and everyone was literally having one pointed at them.
That included Nina, who revealed herself as Vanessa Rojas, a recent police academy graduate who had been undercover in Darius’ crew for months. When she properly introduced herself to Atwater, there even were a few sparks between the two, who had earlier on.
While nothing romantic has come out of their new partnership, the duo were paired together for the rest of the episode and the new girl wasted no time making a splash. Rojas ran headfirst into a sea of gunfire, shooting through a car at a drug runner they were in pursuit of.
Her arms skills weren’t the only ones on display in “Assets.” Her quick thinking saved her own skin when she tried to plant a listening device in Darius’ office. When Darius arrived and confronted her, Rojas nonchalantly played the clueless bartender role, telling him she simply needed to get “the good cognac.”
Vanessa Rojas made quite the impression on her new Chicago PD teammates. If only her first day as an official part of Intelligence went as smoothly! That moment takes the second spot on our One Chicago countdown.