David Gurliacci
Trumbull Police Officer William
Ruscoe has been charged by state police with three counts of sexual assault
involving a member of an Explorer scout program at the department.
"Due to the nature of
these criminal charges, Officer Ruscoe has been suspended from duty, and an
internal investigation is underway to determine if he has violate any
departmental policies or regulations," Trumbull police said in a news
release.
State police from the Tolland
barracks at 9 p.m. Monday charged Ruscoe, 44, with second-, third- and fourth-degree
sexual assault and with tampering with a witness. Ruscoe was initially held on
a $50,000 bond. He was released after posting the bond, according to NBC
Connecticut.
Ruscoe, a 19-year veteran of
the department who joined it in June 1994, has served as an advisor with the
Explorer program for several years, according to the town police news release.
"I am deeply troubled and
concerned by the nature of the charges that have been presented," said
Trumbull Police Chief Thomas Kiely in the news release. "We will make
every effort to ensure that the integrity of the department and its officers is
preserved as this case is investigated, and that the case is handled in a fair
and timely manner."
The investigation and arrest
was entirely handled by state police, said Trumbull Deputy Police Chief Michael
Harry. "We haven't even seen the contents of the arrest warrant."
Criminal investigations of
police officers are typically handled by other police agencies.
Ruscoe hadn't been in any kind
of trouble with his department until Monday's arrest, Harry said.
Ruscoe received a Medal of
Excellent Arrest from his department last August, according to the minutes of
the Police Commission meeting (page 5). In that case he had arrested people
outside a shopping mall, some of whom were in possession of at total of 53
fraudulent credit cards.
