A former firefighter sexually assaulted and abused a teenage boy who was a junior firefighter for years in Prince George’s County, Maryland, police say.
Prince George’s County police began investigating 61-year-old John Inman last July after learning of allegations against him dating back to the 1990’s.
An investigation revealed Inman, who was a paid firefighter for the Prince George’s County Fire and EMS Department, sexually assaulted the teen multiple times between 1991 and 1996, according to police. The victim was between 13 and 17 years old during those years, police said.
“I can say that our victim had finally felt comfortable enough and wanted to go forward so he contacted the Hyattsville Police Department since this originally occurred in Hyattsville and then they transferred it to us because our child abuse detectives handle it for the county, child abuse cases,” Cpt. Danielle Selway said.
The alleged assaults happened at several places, including the Hyattsville Fire Station on Belcrest Road, the Cole Field House on the University of Maryland campus and Inman’s home, police said.
Inman, who now lives in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, retired from the fire department in 2017.
Detectives got a warrant for Inman’s arrest on May 12 and he turned himself in on May 17.
He was charged with second-degree rape, child abuse and related charges.
“The allegations brought forward against retired Prince George’s County firefighter John Inman are deeply troubling,” acting County Executive Tara Jackson said in a statement. “We commend police for their thorough investigation and resulting arrest.”
Inman’s attorney, Andrew Jezic, disputed the allegations in a statement to News4, saying, “He’s 100% innocent and he’s a great guy. He’s going to have the support of dozens of colleagues from the firefighters organizations and other organizations that he was a part of because he had a stellar reputation.”
Police said they’re investigating to see if there could be more victims. They’re asking anyone who would like to speak to a detective to call 301-772-4930.
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