Former Officer Ricky Vitte Jr Appears in Court on Charges of Masturbating With Boy

The former Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper accused of masturbating with a boy and showing him porn pleaded not guilty Monday at his first court appearance.

Ricky Vitte Jr., 34, of Helena, attended his arraignment hearing in Sandusky County Common Pleas Court on a felony charge and a misdemeanor charge of disseminating matter harmful to juveniles. He was flanked at the hearing by his attorney, Dean Henry, as well as a few family members.

After Vitte pleaded not guilty to both counts, Sandusky County prosecutor Tom Stierwalt asked that the former trooper be released on his own recognizance, citing his appearance at the arraignment as an indication he would appear at the next hearing.

A condition of that bond, however, requires Vitte to completely avoid contact with the victim, who is now 18 years old.

As part of the proceedings, Judge Barbara Ansted ran through a laundry list of activities Vitte cannot engage in, given his pending charges.

One of those — a rule barring him from possessing a firearm — prompted Ansted to mention Vitte’s former Highway Patrol job.

“You don’t need (one) for your job anymore?” Ansted asked.

Vitte replied with a succinct “no.”

After the hearing, Henry and Stierwalt hashed out the next hearing date and Vitte was briefly booked into the Sandusky County jail on his indictment.

His arraignment came after nearly four months of conflicting information from Sandusky County officials, Highway Patrol administrators and Ohio Director of Public Safety Jon Born’s office.

In November, Sandusky County deputies learned Vitte allegedly showed porn to a boy and masturbated with him on two occasions when the boy was still a preteen.

Stierwalt at first declined to charge Vitte because the former trooper could argue he was teaching the child about sex. Stierwalt presented the case in April to a grand jury, which handed down an indictment. 

The Patrol then fired Vitte for conduct unbecoming of an officer.

During the Patrol’s investigation of the allegations, Stierwalt said he consulted with a Lucas County prosecutor, who agreed with Stierwalt’s initial decision not to press charges. In a recent public records request by the Register, however, Lucas County officials said they had no record of Stierwalt contacting their office. 

Corrections Officer Jose Maria-Macias Arrested for Sexual Abuse of Minor

A 23-year-old former corrections officer at the Buckeye prison has been booked into Maricopa County Jail for allegedly having a sexual relationship with a 15-year-old girl.

Phoenix police spokesman Sgt. Trent Crump said sexually explicit text messages were found on the 15-year-old's phone on April 21, and on April 24, witnesses called police to report what they believed to be sexual exploitation of a minor.

Investigators interviewed the victim who said it began on April 5 with text messages and led to sexual abuse.

Search warrants were served at the home of Jose Maria-Macias, 23, and detectives found evidence supporting the allegations, Crump said.

Maria-Macias was arrested at the Arizona State Prison Complex-Lewis and faces five counts of sexual conduct with a minor, one count of sexual abuse of a minor, one count of sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of luring a minor for sexual exploitation.

Arizona Department of Corrections spokesman Bill Lamoreaux said Maria-Macias was hired on Dec. 16, 2013 and assigned to ASPC-Lewis on Feb. 1 after graduating from the academy.

Lamoreaux said Maria-Macias resigned from the department at the time of his arrest.

Officer Josh George Arrested for Internet Stalking of Child

The Guy Police Department has fired a part-time police officer after he was arrested last week on suspicion of Internet stalking of a child.

Chief Dave Martini says the department terminated Josh George's employment. Martini says he will ask the Arkansas Commission on Law Enforcement Standards and Training to decertify George as a police officer.

Faulkner County authorities say George was arrested after he allegedly tried to meet two children for sex. Police say it was a sting arranged by investigators and no children were involved.

George was also fired from the Arkansas Community Correction Department, where he was undergoing training as a correctional officer.

George remains jailed and is due in court April 21. Authorities did not know if he had an attorney.

Trooper Sgt. Ricky Vitte Jr Indicted for Masturbating With Pre-Teen Boy

An Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper accused of masturbating with a pre-teen boy while the pair watched pornography was indicted this week by a Sandusky County grand jury, months after officials dropped the investigation and said they would not pursue charges.

Sgt. Ricky Vitte Jr., 34, of the 900 block of County Road 42 in Helena, was charged with disseminating matter harmful to juveniles — one felony count and one misdemeanor.

If convicted of the fourth-degree felony, he could serve six to 18 months in prison and pay a $5,000 fine. If convicted on the misdemeanor, he could see up to 180 days behind bars and a $1,000 fine.

The Highway Patrol placed Vitte on paid administrative leave Wednesday morning, after they learned of the indictment. They have also launched an administrative investigation into the alleged sex acts, said Sgt. Vincent Shirey, an assistant Patrol spokesman.

The goal of the investigation: “Just to do a thorough investigation on the allegations and see what’s true and what’s false and what exactly happened,” Shirey said.

Sandusky County assistant prosecutor Norman Solze offered few additional details on the decision to pursue charges, other than saying Sandusky County prosecutor Tom Stierwalt was the prosecutor assigned to the case.

Solze added, however, that the decision to present the case to a grand jury was made collaboratively by employees in the prosecutor’s office, and not by Stierwalt himself.

The indictment comes after about three months of conflicting information presented by public officials associated with the case.

In January, Stierwalt said he declined to charge the trooper because Vitte could argue he was teaching the boy about sex. In a police report, however, Sandusky County detective Sean O’Connell said Stierwalt’s reasoning for not charging Vitte was due to the length of time that had elapsed since the alleged incident, and the lack of physical evidence.

Ohio State Highway Patrol employees had also offered murky answers about the overall case, as well as the Patrol’s stance on Vitte’s employment and the status of an administrative investigation.

In late February, Ohio Department of Public Safety spokesman Joseph Andrews said there was nothing the Patrol could do in Vitte’s case, unless charges were filed.

— RECENT ALLEGATIONS

Sandusky County deputies began investigating Vitte late last year, after the boy and his mother spoke to Erie County Job and Family Services.

On two occasions about five years ago, Vitte allegedly showed the child porn videos while he and the boy masturbated in the same room, the boy, now a teen, told social workers. When confronted with the allegations, Vitte told the boy’s mother he was teaching him about alternatives to sexual intercourse, according to O’Connell’s report.

A brief criminal investigation ensued, during which O’Connell never interviewed Vitte.

O’Connell did, however, go to Vitte’s home in an attempt to interview him, but when Vitte arrived in his Patrol cruiser and spotted the deputy’s cruiser parked outside, he sped off, the report said.

Vitte allegedly led O’Connell on a mile-long chase before pulling over and saying he needed to talk with his attorney, Dean Henry, the report said.

For his part, Henry has been working with O’Connell and Stierwalt for more than a year as a special prosecutor for the Sandusky County prosecutor’s office.

— RAP SHEET

This recent indictment is not Vitte’s first run-in with the law outside of his duties as a trooper.

In 2003 he was charged with domestic violence after he allegedly beat a 5-year-old boy until his buttocks were bruised and bleeding, then head-butted the boy’s mother when she became upset, according to a police report.

Henry successfully defended Vitte in that case, pleading down his domestic violence charge to a lesser charge of child endangering.

Word of Vitte’s violent tendencies resurfaced late last year when social workers spoke with his children. The children told investigators they saw their father punch holes in walls and doors during violent fits of rage. At other times, they watched Vitte drag their mother into another room by her arm and yell at her, the report stated.

Former Lt. Dennis P Jenks Pleads Guilty to Repeated Sexual Assault of Child

A former Mount Horeb police lieutenant pleaded guilty Monday to repeated sexual assault of a child, for his months-long sexual relationship with a 14-year-old boy who moved into his Madison apartment.

Under a plea agreement, prosecutors will ask for no more than 15 years in prison for Dennis P. Jenks, 45, who was arrested on Feb. 13, 2013, after his relationship with the boy was discovered during the investigation of another sex assault case also involving the boy.

The plea agreement also called for the dismissal of 32 other felonies, including sexual exploitation and possession of child pornography, but Dane County Circuit Judge Ellen Berz can take those charges into consideration when she sentences Jenks on April 21.

Jenks still faces a federal charge of sexual exploitation of a child. But his lawyer, Nicholas Rifelj, told Berz that under an agreement with federal prosecutors, the federal charge would be dismissed if Jenks receives at least 15 years in prison in the state case.

A 15-year sentence is the mandatory minimum for the federal exploitation charge, but because both the state and federal charges arise from the same actions, Jenks could only be given overlapping sentences, not consecutive state and federal sentences.

Jenks resigned from his job with Mount Horeb police after he was charged with sexual assault.

According to a criminal complaint, the boy, a runaway, moved into Jenks’ apartment in October 2012 after meeting on an Internet chat website.

In the meantime, neighbors of James “Alex” Gillespie, a former church music director, complained to police about parties at Gillespie’s home in Middleton. During their investigation, police learned that the 14-year-old boy had been having sex with Gillespie, and that the boy was living with Jenks at the time.

That information led to Jenks’ arrest.

In October, Gillespie was sentenced to 15 years of probation, with one year in jail as part of his probation. He is still serving the jail portion of his sentence.

Jenks could be sentenced to up to 25 years in prison with 15 years of extended supervision for the repeated sexual assault of a child conviction.

Former Court Officer Alberto Yard Pleads Guilty to Sexually Exploiting Children

A former court officer has pleaded guilty to conspiring to sexually exploit children.

Prior to his arrest, Alberto Yard had worked in Brooklyn Civil Court for more than 19 years. After pleading to the felony on Thursday before Eastern District Judge Kiyo Matsumoto, he now faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years incarceration. Sentencing was scheduled for July 10.

Yard, 45, was arrested in July, following a Google alert to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about a user account that had uploaded 213 images of child pornography. The account was traced to Yard.

Many images depicted child pornography, but the account also contained "voyeuristic photographs of children." According to an arrest complaint, Yard told authorities he took pictures of children while on duty as an officer (NYLJ, July, 5, 2013).

After inspecting electronic equipment seized at Yard's residence, he was also charged with production of child pornography (NYLJ, July 15, 2013). Authorities ultimately determined Yard possessed thousands of images. He also has a co-defendant in the matter; her case is pending.

Yard was suspended without pay after his arrest. His attorney, Deveraux Cannick of Aiello Cannick in Queens, said his client opted to resign from his job early in the case. Cannick said Yard wanted any children connected to the case to avoid the experience of a trial and said his client, by pleading guilty, was "stepping up and acknowledging the wrong he committed."

Assistant U.S. Attorney Margaret Gandy handled the prosecution.

Sergeant Alberto Randazzo Arrested for Child Porn

A New York City police sergeant was arraigned on Tuesday on numerous child pornography charges, after internal affairs investigators found several explicit images and videos on his laptop computer. 

In several recordings found on the computer, the sergeant, Alberto Randazzo, is heard providing “verbal instructions during a cyber video chat session” to an unidentified woman lying in bed with an infant, who appears to be 1 to 2 years old, and directing the woman to “perform certain sex acts on the infant,” the police said.

Also uncovered were two videos involving a man engaged in sex acts with a girl, about 8 to 10 years old, according to a criminal complaint filed by the Queens district attorney’s office.

Prosecutors charged Sergeant Randazzo, 36, with 11 counts of use of a child in a sexual performance, 23 counts of promoting a sexual performance by a child and 23 counts of possessing a sexual performance by a child, the complaint states. He has been suspended from the force.

Sergeant Randazzo’s lawyer, Anthony DiFiore, did not return a phone call on Tuesday evening.      

Former Officer Hamilton Riley Arrested for Child Sexual Assault

A former Searcy police officer was arrested at 1 a.m. Tuesday morning in the bedroom of a 16-year-old girl, according to the White County Prosecuting Attorneys Office.

"Usually, he's here directing the kids and getting them across the street. That's about it," says Andrew Briggs, who saw Hamilton Riley outside Ahlf Junior High on several occasions.

Riley served as the school resource officer for more than three years, and more than seven on the Searcy Police Department.

News that Riley was arrested in the home of a 16-year-old girl is upsetting to parents.

Briggs explains, "Having a son-in-law for a police officer and having children, it's just not right. It's just not right.

Prosecutors confirm information about an inappropriate relationship was developed only on Monday. Special agents from the state police were brought in. And at 1 a.m. Tuesday morning, those special agents arrested Riley inside the victim's home. By 7 a.m. Tuesday morning, Riley had offered his resignation as an officer with the Searcy Police Department.

White County Prosecutor Chris Raff says, "Anytime you see someone that has the trust and authority that a police officer does, and they are further placed in the position of being the go-to person for children and students, it's really a damning thing. It's a terrible situation. What we are alleging he has done is a terrible thing. And we're going to see that the law punishes him."

Tuesday, students at the school were not told about Riley's arrest. Now shocked parents are finding a way to tell their children their police officer won't be coming back

Briggs says, "Young girls and adults, that's just not the way it is."

Authorities released Riley after he posted a $100,000 bond. His next court appearance is in March

Sheriff Deputy Investigated for Sex with Teen Boy

A Montgomery County Sheriff's Deputy is being investigated after reports that he had sex with a teenage boy he met on the Internet.

Another man, from West Carrollton, was arrested in the case after the 17-year-old said he engaged in separate sexual encounters with both men.

The sergeant, whose name was not released, has been placed on medical leave while the case is investigated, and he has not been charged with anything.

Warren County is handling the investigation into the deputy because the alleged incident occurred there.

Deputies arrested 49-year-old Kevin Hetzer on three charges – unlawful sexual contact, pandering obscenity and pandering sexually-oriented material – after searching his home Thursday.

Investigators said Hetzer owns a transportation company and often travels out of state with youth groups in the community.

The boy said he met Hetzer through craigslist.org, investigators said, and is currently undergoing treatment for drug addiction, where he told a counselor about the alleged encounters.

Authorities said the teen likely had sexual encounters with other area men.

Former Deputy Steve Romero Charged with 10 Counts of Child Exploitation

CACHE COUNTY, Utah

A former Cache County Sheriff's deputy is in jail with charges of 10 counts of child exploitation. The Utah Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) task force says Steve Romero was arrested in Las Vegas without incident. Investigators say they got a tip in January that Romero had child pornography on his home computer. They interviewed him, searched the computer and allegedly found what they were looking for.

"It does impact me personally that a law enforcement officer would be engaged in this kind of behavior, just as it would a teacher or a minister, anybody who works with young kids," said Ken Wallentine of the Utah Attorney General's Office.

Romero will be brought back to Cache County to face charges.
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