A Michigan sheriff’s deputy is accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a woman he arrested for shoplifting at the Walmart store in Clio. Deputy George Zofchak II had been dispatched to the store on Christmas Eve, where he arrested a male suspect inside for shoplifting. He then removed the man’s girlfriend from her vehicle in the parking lot, according to Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton.
Zofchak handcuffed the woman and put her in the back of his patrol car. Sheriff Robert Pickell said Zofchak instructed another deputy to bring the male suspect to the Genesee County Jail and then took the woman to a local motel where she was staying. He believes Zofchak had probable cause to arrest the woman for shoplifting.
Inside the woman’s room, Zofchak removed her handcuffs, sexually assaulted her and instructed her never to tell anyone about what happened, Pickell said. Before leaving, he made sure the woman understood clearly that she was not to say anything to anyone,” he said. The victim’s sister called the sheriff’s office on Christmas Day to report the allegations against Zofchak.
He has been charged with first-degree criminal sexual conduct, kidnapping and misconduct in office. He faces up to life in prison if convicted of the most serious charges. “Nobody is above the law and that especially includes sworn police officers,” Leyton said. “The public expects and relies on law enforcement to protect us from the criminal element. When the roles are reversed, the public trust is broken.” [Source: KKCO11 News]
