The police officer who shot dead an Irish man in the US state of Oregon last month has been arrested on suspicion of sexually abusing a girl.
Authorities in Marion County said Officer Tony Gonzalez was arrested yesterday and was being held on allegations of sexual abuse. He will appear in court tomorrow.
Deputy District Attorney Matt Kemmy said officers were contacted on Saturday by a woman and her daughter, who is the alleged victim. Mr Kemmy did not reveal the girl’s age.
Gonzalez is on administrative leave from the Silverton Police Department, pending the outcome of the investigation into the fatal shooting of Andrew Hanlon (20), who was killed on June 30th in Silverton. Relatives claim that Mr Hanlon was shot seven times.
Mr Hanlon (20) was shot dead after police responded to a reported burglary in the small town where he had been living for the past year.
Mr Hanlon’s brother-in-law Nathan Heise said the victim had shown signs of mental disturbance in the months prior to his death.
The mother of Mr Hanlon travelled to Oregon on Friday in a bid to find out more information on the death of her son. She held a two hour meeting with prosecuters.
Dorothea Carroll plans to take her son's body back to Dublin early this week.
Additional reporting: AP