A LeRoy man who resigned his position with the University of Illinois Police Department after he was charged with official misconduct now faces criminal sexual assault charges.
Jerald “Jerry” Sandage, 48, is charged with four counts of criminal sexual assault, one count of criminal sexual abuse and two counts of intimidation. The new charges were disclosed in a statement Wednesday by the Illinois State Police.
Sandage resigned his post with the university police in February after he was charged with official misconduct and became the target of a police investigation into sexual misconduct.
Sandage is being held in the Piatt County jail, on $750,000 bond on four separate warrants.
In December, the suspect was charged with seven counts of official misconduct accusing him of using police resources to gather information on women between February 2017 and January 2018.
According to statements in court in February by a Champaign County prosecutor, multiple woman told police they may have been sexually assaulted by Sandage.
The former officer was placed on administrative leave in September 2018 after allegations of sexual assault surfaced against him, but he returned to work. He was placed on administrative leave again in October 2019, two months before the criminal charges were filed.
The investigation leading to the new charges was conducted by agents from the university and Champaign police departments as well as the Champaign County State’s Attorney and Sheriff’s Department and state police.
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