FRESNO, CA (KMJ) – The Tulare County Sheriff’s Office has arrested an off-duty Porterville Police Sergeant for Inappropriate Contact with a Minor.
It happened Sunday in the area of Jay Street and Baker Avenue in Porterville.
According to the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office, deputies were called out to the area to check on a suspicious car.
When deputies arrived, they saw two cars parked in front of each other. A deputy went up to one of the cars and saw a man and a teenage girl in the car, deputies say.
The man identified himself to deputies as 33-year-old Wayne Martin, an off-duty Porterville Police Sergeant. The victim, a 17-year-old girl, told deputies that she is an explorer with the Porterville Police Department.
The Porterville Police Department says Sergeant Martin is a 12 year veteran of the department. Martin is also the Porterville Police Department’s Explorer Program supervisor.
Porterville Police Chief Kroutil also says that while it is believed that this incident is an isolated one, the entire program will be reviewed in depth to ensure that is the case.
The investigation resulted in the arrest of Porterville Police Sergeant Wayne Martin on three-counts of Annoying or Molesting a Person Under the Age of 18.
His bail is set at $150,000.
Porterville police say Martin has been placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.
Sheriff Mike Boudreaux has asked Kings County officials to house Martin at the Kings County Jail, as Sergeant Martin likely has people he has arrested in the Tulare County Jail.
Anyone with information regarding this incident is encouraged to contact Sgt. J. Kennedy with the Tulare County Sheriff*s Investigations Unit at (559) 802-9563. They can also call 24 hours a day at (559) 733-6218 or anonymously, by accessing the TipNow page at [email protected].
Chief Kroutil released the following statement regarding Martin’s arrest:
Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux and his staff are consummate professionals and I have complete faith in their criminal investigation into this incident. Our department will cooperate fully with their investigation. I am shocked, saddened and angry that Sergeant Martin has tarnished the image of the Porterville Police Department by his actions. His actions in no way reflect the values of the department or its employees and will not be tolerated.
Click to hear the report by KMJ’S Liz Kern:
