May 2024
A roundup of police predators
Welcome to Police Predators, a side project that documents child sexual abuse by law enforcement officers. Every month, I’ll be doing a roundup of all the stories I could find about cops that were charged with, convicted of, and/or sentenced for their crimes against minors.
Christopher Ortiz, a Vineland, New Jersey police sergeant, was indicted for endangering the welfare of a child, by possessing child sexual exploitation/abuse material, official misconduct, and tampering with public records. Ortiz is alleged to have kept child sexual abuse materials from a case being worked on by the department. He is accused of having 17 images related to that case, as well as over 100 other images of minors being sexually abused. Ortiz has been suspended without pay since March 2023. Original story here.
Brian H. Murphy, a former Maryland state trooper, was sentenced to 45 years in prison for sexually assaulting a girl in 2007. He was found guilty of sexual abuse of a minor while he was temporarily responsible for her supervision, knowingly soliciting a minor to engage in sexual acts, and sexual abuse of a minor. Original story here.
Ray Collar, a Chamblee, Georgia police officer, was arrested and charged with two counts of distribution of child sexual abuse materials. Collar was immediately removed from duty. Original story here.
Larry Fickett, a former Bar Harbor, Maine police officer, was arrested and charged with sexual exploitation, possession of sexually explicit material, and endangering the welfare of a child. Fickett is out on bail and may not interact with anyone 16 years of age or younger. Original story here.
Oscar Hudspeth Sr., a former policer officer with the Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety in South Dakota, was arrested and charged with aggravated sexual abuse and abusive sexual contact of a child. Hudspeth is out on bail pending his trial, which is slated for August. Original story here.
Aaron Ray Fetters, a former Michigan Department of Corrections officer, was sentenced to 16 years in prison for sexually exploiting children and distributing child sexual abuse materials. Fetters recorded himself sexually abusing the girl over the course of several years. Investigators also found "hundreds of images" of child sexual abuse materials. Original story here.
Brian L. Robinson, a former Sikeston, Missouri police officer, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for statutory rape of a child younger than 14 years old. Robinson's victim was 8 years old. Original story here.
Markanthony Fernandez, a Bartow, Florida police officer, was arrested and charged with promotion of a juvenile in a sexual performance, use of a juvenile in a sexual performance, battery by strangulation, illegal use of a 2-way communication device, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and providing alcoholic beverages to a person under 21 years of age. Fernandez allegedly provided 4 teenage girls with liquor and cannabis, sexually assaulted at least one of them, took videos of the encounter, and shared the videos with coworkers. He has refused to resign from the department, but he is on administrative leave, with termination pending based on the case. Original story here.
Kurtis Cunkle, a former Calhoun County, Michigan corrections officer, pleaded no contest to a charge of possession of child sexual abuse materials. Cunkle resigned from his position after turning himself in. He faces up to 10 years in prison and registration as a sex offender. Original story here.
Jonathan Hines, a Tulsa County, Oklahoma juvenile detention officer, was arrested and charged with human trafficking, possessing a cell phone in jail, and destroying evidence. Hines allegedly sexually assaulted a minor under his care. Other minors at the facility allege that Hines would bring them contraband in exchange for sex. A civil rights lawsuit was just filed against several detention officers and staff, leaders of juvenile affairs, the Tulsa Board of County Commissioners, and the Juvenile Bureau of the Tulsa County District Court. The suit alleges widespread sexual abuse that was swept under the rug or enabled. Original story here.
Egide “DJ” Ndagije, a former school resource officer with the Aurora, Colorado police department, was arrested and charged with a crime for reportedly sending inappropriate texts to a 16-year-old girl while he was still on the job. The exact charges are unclear at this time. Ndagije allegedly "took a picture of a girl without her permission, sent her inappropriate texts, and used a police database to find the girl and her family." Original story here.
Costas Alestas, a former Bethlehem, Pennsylvania school resource officer, was arrested and charged with statutory sexual assault, institutional sexual assault, aggravated indecent assault, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, and other related offenses. Alestas allegedly groomed a 14-year-old student, sexually assaulted her multiple times, including while he was in uniform and on duty, and took suggestive videos of an 11-year-old student. Original story here.
Koby Don Williams, a former Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent, was found guilty of attempted online enticement of a minor. Williams messaged a phone number in a planted Craigslist ad that claimed a 13-year-old was posing as a 19-year-old sex worker. He negotiated price and booked a motel room to meet the purported minor, where he was arrested. Williams had $4,000 in cash and a bottle of sexual enhancement pills. Original story here.
Andrew Scott Selby, a former Lancaster, Pennsylvania police officer, was arrested and charged with two counts of rape, two counts of sexual assault, involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, statutory sexual assault, attempted rape, attempted statutory sexual assault, attempted involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, and attempted sexual assault. Selby allegedly raped a 16-year-old girl in 1997 while investigating allegations that another man raped her. Investigators are looking for additional victims they believe were assaulted by Selby. Original story here.
James Montiel, an Orange County, Florida sheriff's deputy, was arrested and charged with 10 counts of possession of child sexual abuse materials. Montiel also killed a suspect in 2022 by shooting him in the back. Original story here.
Updates
Elias Huizar died by suicide after fleeing a traffic stop. Huizar shot and killed his wife, and his 17-year-old victim was found dead at his home.
Jared Michael Lemon was convicted on five counts of unlawful possession of child sexual abuse materials. Lemon faces up to 25 years in prison.
Darrin Marshall Skinner was charged in federal court with distributing child sexual abuse materials.
Alaa Robert Bartley was indicted on 12 counts, including attempted production of child sexual abuse materials, attempted coercion and enticement of a minor, as well as distributing, receiving, and possessing child sexual abuse materials.
Carter Meister was sentenced to four years in prison. He must also register as a sex offender for life.
Joseph Edward Adams pleaded no contest to three charges of taking indecent liberties with a child under the age of 15. Adams faces up to five years in prison.
Brandon Crites was sentenced to at least five years in prison for receiving, possessing, and distributing child sexual abuse materials.
NBC recently published an investigative piece on sexual abuse allegations in a police youth program. I highly recommend it.
You can find all my previous roundups below.
