A Center Line police officer is suspended with pay and is at the center of a criminal sexual conduct investigation in Hazel Park.
Sources tell 7 Action News the case has been under investigation for a couple of weeks. The officer, who we're not naming, is a veteran with several years on the force who also worked in the city of Detroit.
He was taken out of service, his gun and badge taken, when the chief got the call from Hazel Park police on Thursday.
"Upon hearing that, we immediately administratively suspended him from the department," Center Line Public Safety Director Paul Myszenski tells 7 Investigator Jim Kiertzner.
The police chief in Hazel Park would not go on camera but confirms they have been investigating the case. A woman in their jurisdiction alleges she was sexually assaulted when the officer drove her home. He was off-duty at the time.
The chief says the officer denies any crime. He is in his mid-30s and had worked in Detroit for about eight years before coming to Center Line a year ago.
"It was a surprise to us. He worked hard and had a lot of enthusiasm, took his job seriously," Myszenski said.
The detective in Hazel Park is working the case, and the chief there tells us it could be wrapped up soon. It would go to the Oakland County Prosecutor's Office on charges.
