Police Officer Arrested on Child Porn Charges Dies After Being Pulled From Potomac
Officer Marc
Washington, 32, was accused of taking nude photographs of a 15-year-old girl.
By Benjamin Freed
A DC cop who
was arrested last week after he allegedly took nude photographs of a
15-year-old girl was pronounced dead Tuesday night after police and firefighter
teams pulled his body out of the frigid Potomac River, the Metropolitan Police
Department said. The officer, Marc Washington, was pronounced dead shortly
after being pulled from the water off Hains Point about 9:30 PM.
Washington, 32,
was arrested December 2 after visiting the Southeast DC residence of the girl,
who had been reported as having run away from home. According to court
documents, Washington allegedly asked to speak to the girl privately, and
during the conversation asked her to disrobe so he could take several photos of
her. The girl and her mother reported the encounter to police, and Washington
was arrested a short time later.
Charging
documents allege that Washington deleted the photographs before he was arrested,
though investigators were able to retreive them from his camera, along with
photo sets of other girls.
Washington, a
seven-year MPD veteran who lived in Waldorf, Maryland, was released from
custody Monday pending trial after his lawyer moved to have him placed in a
high-supervision program. According to the conditions of Washington's release,
he was ordered to remain at home 24 hours a day and to wear a GPS tracking
device.
After
Washington was arrested last week, MPD Chief Cathy Lanier said his alleged
behavior was especially "egregious" because it occurred while he was
on duty.