Former North Kingsville Police Chief, Officer Indicted in Sex-Related Investigation
A former police chief and officer for the North Kingsville Village Police Department were indicted Thursday after illicit photographs were found on a computer and one reportedly had sex with a woman while on duty.
An Ashtabula County Grand Jury indicted former police chief Nathan Houser on one count of tampering with evidence, two counts of dereliction of duty, and one count of unauthorized use of property.
Former police officer Denny Moore was indicted on one count each of dereliction of duty and unauthorized use of property.
Moore admitted to accidentally downloading four images of a woman undressing and an image of a male private part, investigators said.
Houser, who was chief at the time the images were discovered, directed Moore to delete the images in August 2018, according to the prosecutor. Moore attempted to delete the photos and resigned as directed by the chief. The images were apparently not deleted from the computer, and Houser reportedly directed another officer to deleted the same images.
The Sheriff's Office was also notified about allegations that Houser was having sex with an unrelated woman in his office while he was on duty. Investigators talked to the woman, and she admitted they had sex on at least 15 different occasions in 2018, the prosecutor said. Houser admitted to having sex several times while on duty and resigned a day after making the admission.
The charges stem from an investigation by the Ashtabula County Sheriff's Office and Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation.