UPDATE, OCTOBER 18, 2018: Latino Rebels spoke with CASA Maryland about the case.
The following story is coming out of Prince George’s County in Maryland, via ABC 7. According to reports, PG County police officer Ryan Macklin was arrested Monday night and charged for with first degree rape, second degree rape, second degree assault and other offenses after he allegedly forced an undocumented women to perform sexual acts on him after a routine traffic stop last Thursday.
Prince George’s County police officer Ryan Macklin arrested and accused of raping a woman he pulled over in Langley Park Thursday morning. Chief says he’s concerned there could be other victims. 301-772-4795 is number set up for people with more information about Macklin. pic.twitter.com/B8XyXorY60
— Tom Roussey (@tomrousseyABC7) October 16, 2018
On Tuesday, ABC 7 reported that the woman was a Latina living unauthorized in the United States. Ana Martinez, a spokesperson for immigrant rights advocacy grpup CASA Maryland, believed that the woman was targeted.
“I do think that she was targeted because of her race,” Martinez said. “One assumes that when you’re pulled over, it’s for a legit reason. But in this situation it was something more. It was more of an abuse of power.”
According to the ABC 7 report, Martinez “fears Macklin may have used [the woman’s] license to determine the victim was illegally in the country before allegedly raping her.”
“There are signs on the drivers license so they can find out if the woman is undocumented,” Martinez said in the story.
During a Monday night press conference, PG County police chief Hank Stawinski said, “We don’t have any information that leads us to believe that this victim was targeted because of her immigration status.”
https://www.facebook.com/PGPD1/videos/1948545712105378/
The PG County police are conduction an internal investigation. Macklin has been suspended. Here is what the PG Country police released on Monday:
A suspended Prince George’s County Police officer is now in custody and facing multiple charges including first degree rape, second degree rape and second degree assault. Police Officer First Class Ryan Macklin was taken into custody this evening. He is accused of sexually assaulting an adult female driver during a recent traffic stop.
The preliminary investigation reveals Macklin pulled over the driver early Thursday morning on University Boulevard in Langley Park. During that stop, Macklin is accused of forcing the victim to perform a sexual act while they were both seated in her car in a nearby parking lot. Macklin was on-duty, in uniform, and driving a marked police cruiser at the time. At this point in the investigation, there is no evidence as to why he targeted this victim. Investigators released this brief surveillance video where POFC Macklin can be seen activating his emergency equipment on his cruiser in order to initiate the traffic stop in question.
“The charges against this officer are highly troubling. Officers take an oath to protect others, not to abuse their authority in order to victimize someone. Those who live and work in Prince George’s County deserve the very best from the men and women of this department,” said Chief Hank Stawinski.
The PGPD’s Special Investigation Response Team is leading this investigation and is working closely with the Prince George’s County State’s Attorney’s Office.
Macklin has been with the department for six years and is assigned to the Bureau of Patrol. He’s charged with a total of five charges—first degree rape, second degree rape, perverted practice, second degree assault and fourth degree sex offense.
Investigators would like to talk to anyone who has information on this officer or who may have had a similar experience with him. Please call investigators at 301-772-4795.
