On January 31, a former St. Louis police officer was indicted on 36 federal offenses, including s*xual assault against 19 male inmates. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that 34-year-old Marcellis Blackwell, a member of the North County Police Cooperative, s*xually molested and touched male victims.
Blackwell is accused of s*xually assaulting male captives whom he had detained or hindered their capacity to react. The former officer had only been with the North County Police Cooperative for a year when he was arrested and charged with s*xual assaults.
Authorities allege that the defendant s*xually molested many victims in a single day, as well as falsifying records to avoid being accused. Blackwell faced accusations after being accused of arresting and s*xually abusing a handcuffed man. That incident occurred near Normandy High School, and he was charged with the assault in June. In September, a federal grand jury indicted the former police officer on 16 criminal charges.
According to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, detectives discovered recordings and images of Blackwell conducting s*xual assaults on his personal and business phones, and the men charged have come forward. Court filings revealed that the gadgets also had secret photos of persons using public facilities or small elevators.
Blackwell resigned following the charges. His alleged acts were also described as “massively disheartening” by department spokesman Maj. Ron Martin. In December, a judge ordered the 34-year-old suspect to remain in detention because he represented a threat to public safety and could flee before his cases were resolved.