Former officer pleads guilty to assaulting girls


March 28, 2012 at 8:39a.m.

Former officer pleads guilty to assaulting girls

WEST CHESTER, Pa. (AP) — A former southeastern Pennsylvania police officer has pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting four young girls by claiming he was possessed by a spirit and needed to protect their families.

Under the terms of a plea agreement reached Tuesday, former Kennett Square police officer Jose Manuel Santiago will spend at least 12 years in prison for the assaults. Three victims told police they were under the age of 14 when the attacks began.

The 56-year-old Newark, Del. man had been scheduled to go on trial in Chester County Court before agreeing to plead guilty to charges including rape and involuntary deviate sexual intercourse.

Investigators say Santiago told the girls he was possessed by a spirit and needed to have sex with them to protect them and their families from harm.