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State of Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security
Division of State Police
Superintendent Thomas F. Mac Leish |
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Trooper Charged with Sexual Exploitation
Released Monday, May 11, 2009
Bear – The Delaware State Police have arrested a 7-year veteran patrol trooper of the DSP for Sexual Extortion (F), Receiving a Bribe (F), and Official Misconduct (M) after an investigation revealed he engaged in inappropriate sexual relations with a 39-year-old New Castle woman. This arrest culminates an investigation by DSP of alleged misconduct brought to our attention by a woman arrested by Cpl. Joshua A. Giddings, 32 years of age who was assigned to Troop 9 in Odessa. The woman alleged that she and Mr. Giddings engaged in a sexual act while he was acting in his official capacity as a trooper. Information was provided and our investigation later substantiated that on Thursday, March 19 at approximately 8:06 pm, Mr. Giddings was working in a patrol capacity when he was dispatched to JC Penney's at the Christiana Mall for a report of a female shoplifter in custody. Our investigation determined that Mr. Giddings arrested the woman for a single count of Shoplifting and for capias charges from a local court related to traffic offenses. Subsequent the arrest, the woman and Mr. Giddings agreed that if the woman performed a sexual favor that Giddings would not take her forthwith to court to face the shoplifting charges and capiases. Instead, he issued her a criminal summons to appear at a later date in court. With the woman under arrest and detained in the police vehicle, Mr. Giddings drove to a nearby, secluded area and engaged in a sexual act with her. Mr. Giddings then concluded his interaction with the woman and drove her home. Once DSP was notified of this allegation, an investigation was immediately launched and Mr. Giddings was suspended with pay and benefits. During the investigation, detectives secured a clothing item belonging to the victim, which was found to contain traces of seminal fluid. Consequently, detectives later obtained a search warrant to obtain DNA from Mr. Giddings. The physical evidence obtained by detectives from the victim’s clothing and the DNA sample obtained from Mr. Giddings were sent to the state’s Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) for comparison. The two samples matched the DNA profile of Mr. Giddings and supported the allegation brought forth and warranted the aforementioned charges. Arrest warrants were obtained and today, Mr. Giddings was informed of the arrest warrant and voluntarily turned himself in to investigators at Troop 2 in Glasgow. He was formally charged with Sexual Extortion (F), Receiving a Bribe (F), and Official Misconduct (M) and upon arraignment, was issued an $8,000.00 unsecured bond. Because of the arrest, Colonel Thomas F. Mac Leish has placed Mr. Giddings on suspension without pay and benefits with the intent to dismiss him from the division.
Joshua A. Giddings
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