DETROIT (WXYZ) — Retired Detroit Police Sgt. Benjamin Wagner is facing seven counts of criminal sexual conduct and five counts of kidnapping, prompting calls to revoke his pension if he is convicted.
Authorities are awaiting Wagner’s extradition from North Carolina, where he was arrested.
Watch Randy Wimbley's video report below:
After my initial report on Thursday, a viewer reached out to ask what would happen to the former sergeant's retirement account in light of the allegations. I followed up and learned from the city that it may depend on whether the alleged crimes happened while Wagner was on duty.
"I was horrified," Board of Police Commissioner Darryl Woods said regarding his initial reaction to the allegations.
"He don't deserve one penny of those pensions being a predator while you're a police officer. You leave here as a sergeant — if you are guilty of that, shame on you. You should forfeit your pension and give it to those victims you victimized," Woods said.
"The deplorable fact in this case is that the person that we are charging today has led a double life as a law enforcement officer and a serial rapist," Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said.
Old accusations are also resurfacing. In a separate case in 2002, Wagner went on trial for allegedly raping a young relative when she was 7 years old, with the alleged crimes continuing into her teens. A jury found Wagner not guilty in that 2002 case.
Connor Ferrick, the family attorney for Wagner’s relative and alleged victim, says the charges announced this week is vindication.
"We had an innocent little girl in a tough situation who came out to talk about this monster, but we ran up against the blue wall. It was clear to me they weren’t going to believe her over this police officer," Ferrick said.
Watch Randy Wimbley's initial video report below:
Less than a year after Wagner was cleared in the 2002 case, he allegedly kidnapped a 16-year-old girl on Ferguson Street near 7 Mile Mile and the Southfield Freeway as she walked to a bus stop to get to school. He allegedly held her at gunpoint and raped her.
Wagner is accused of kidnapping and raping four other girls and young women between 1999 and 2003.
Worthy said Wagner retired from the Detroit Police Department in 2017.
See the press conference from the prosecutor's office in the video below:
Sources told me Wagner was under an internal investigation when he left the department because he allegedly had a young female who was reported missing living with him. I reached out to the Detroit Police Department for comment about that investigation, but the department declined.
"No one is above the law, and these allegations are absolutely disturbing and when we get allegations, we take them seriously and we investigate them," Chief Todd Bettison said.
Anyone who believes Wagner sexually assaulted them should call the Detroit Police Department Sex Crimes Unit at 313-596-1950.
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