An ex-Detroit police officer now stands accused of sexually assaulting five young women and girls over two decades ago.
Former police sergeant Benjamin Wagner allegedly committed the crimes between 1999 and 2003, when he was employed as an officer. He retired from the police department in 2017 after a 28-year career.
Wayne County prosecutor Kym Worthy said Wagner’s arrest in North Carolina this week was a “culmination of a multi-year journey to justice,” and that “the alleged facts in this case are disturbing, unsettling and infuriating.”
Worthy added that investigators believe Wagner likely assaulted more than just those five victims, all of whom were kidnapped at gunpoint in the early morning hours within a roughly 5-mile radius of where Wagner then lived in northwest Detroit.
“All of these victims or survivors were walking. They were headed to a certain place, whether it be school, home from work, [or] to a friend's house,” Worthy said at a Thursday press conference. “And yes, this defendant acted in a common way in all these cases.”
Worthy said other women who believe Wagner may have assaulted them can contact the Detroit Police Sex Crimes Unit at 313-596-1950 and request to speak to Sergeant Jennifer Carlson. Avalon Healing Center can also be contacted for sexual assault survivor support and assistance at 313-964-9701.
Wagner now faces 14 charges of rape and kidnapping, and is scheduled to be arraigned next week.
Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison called Wagner’s alleged crimes “egregious” and “disturbing.” But Bettison added that the years-long, multi-agency law enforcement investigation that led to Wagner’s arrest represents a “true example” of most officers’ dedication.
“Cold cases are oftentimes some of the most difficult cases to solve,” Bettison said. “They require years of persistence, careful review of evidence, and most importantly, an unwavering commitment to justice.”
Officials said the key evidence against Wagner is that his DNA matches the samples taken in the victims’ rape kits. They were among the thousands of Detroit rape kits found sealed in an abandoned police warehouse in 2009. All of those kits have since been tested, but investigators are still building and prosecuting cases based on the evidence found in them.
