Ohio police officer accused of forcing women into sex acts

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DAYTON, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio man accused of abusing his authority as a police officer to force or pressure women into sex acts is charged with rape, kidnapping and interfering with civil rights, among other counts.

Justin Sanderson resigned from the Phillipsburg police after being arrested last month and turned himself in at a jail after his indictment, the Dayton Daily News reported.

Court records on Tuesday listed no attorney for the 32-year-old Huber Heights man. He is scheduled for arraignment on Sept. 12 on the newly announced 21-count indictment, which also includes charges of sexual battery, gross sexual imposition and misusing a law enforcement database.

One woman alleges that Sanderson stopped her on suspicion of impaired driving in May and forced her to have sex with him at the police station, Montgomery County Prosecutor Mat Heck Jr. said. Another woman who was arrested on a warrant in early June separately accused Sanderson of forcing her into sex acts at the station, Heck said.

Two more women allege that Sanderson arranged to meet them for sex at a motel in June using the website Backpage.com, then showed up in uniform, told them he was investigating human trafficking and prostitution, and said he would give them a warning, Heck said. Sanderson briefly left, then returned to the motel room minutes later and engaged in sexual activity with the women, who said they felt compelled to cooperate because he was an officer, Heck said.

Sanderson was arrested after the women from the motel incident reported what happened, and news of his arrest prompted the other accusers to report their allegations to police, Heck said.

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