PHOENIX — A Phoenix police officer is facing charges from incidents in 2018 and 2019 involving people in police custody.
Phoenix Police Officer Sean Pena is facing one count of sexual assault and one count of unlawful sexual conduct from an incident on August 26, 2018. He is also facing one count of unlawful sexual conduct from an incident on June 1, 2019.
The Phoenix Police Department says he has been on administrative leave since November 2019. The department is working on terminating Pena's employment with the force.
According to court documents, on August 26, 2018, Pena was taking a woman into custody to the Fourth Avenue Jail when he sexually assaulted the woman in the back of his patrol unit. Pena denied the victim's statement but Pena's DNA was found on the woman after a sexual assault examination, documents said.
Then on November 20, 2019, a woman reported that she had been sexually abused by an officer in June 2019. She told police that an officer had touched her inappropriately and made her touch his genitals when they were alone.
A witness said the victim told her that Pena drove the victim from the location of a welfare check to another location where the incident happened, documents said. Records from the patrol vehicle confirm the timeline. No biological evidence was recovered. Pena denied the allegation.
The grand jury indictment is dated June 19.
Maricopa County Attorney Allister Adel announced the charges Wednesday. She also announced charges against an officer with the Mesa Police Department.
“To ensure that the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office is best able to protect victim’s rights and hold criminals accountable in the pursuit of justice, it is important that this agency has a collaborative, working relationship with public safety professionals," Adel said in an emailed statement. "However, this partnership will not impact charging decisions when it is necessary to hold those in the public safety profession accountable for their actions. The alleged criminal acts in both cases were committed by individuals who are sworn to protect and serve their community. I am committed to ensuring that we will hold individuals who commit crimes accountable, regardless of their profession or relationship with this office.”
