I-TEAM: State looking into sexual assault allegation against police officer at Toledo state psychiatric hospital

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) - The 13 Action News I-TEAM has learned about an investigation at the state psychiatric hospital in Toledo. That investigation has nothing to do with patients but an allegation of sexual assault by one of their police officers. A fellow officer is the victim.

That woman told the I-TEAM she feels like she’s being treated as a suspect and not the victim.

This victim very much wants to have this case investigated to reveal what happened on Detroit Avenue in Toledo, even though the alleged suspect is dead.

Krystal Sellers’ years of law enforcement experience led her to become a police officer at the Northwest Ohio Psychiatric Hospital about four years ago.

“Just pretty much a retirement job,” said Sellers.

This job became anything but that. In mid October, Sellers says she came into the office for a normal shift when a fellow police officer came in, whom she did know, made sexually suggestive comments and then she says sexually assaulted her in an office at the hospital.

“He got up and forcefully got me off my chair and pretty much took me into the one room in the police department,” said Sellers. “After it was all done, I walked out of there just grossed out and disgusted.”

Sellers did not report it for several weeks, she said it was embarrassing.

When she reported it in November, the officer accused of doing it was put on administrative leave, according to a letter in his personnel file obtained by the I-TEAM. We are not identifying the man because he has not been charged with a crime. He won’t be because he died one day after the administrative leave. His death is being investigated by the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office. The coroner there still has not made a conclusive ruling.

Sellers, who herself is on administrative leave, still wants a thorough investigation, which she says she’s had trouble getting.

“They’re treating me like the suspect instead of the victim,” said Sellers. “They are trying to sweep this under the rug because they don’t want this out.”

The I-TEAM has now learned the Ohio State Highway Patrol has started an investigation and at this point, it’s still open.

The Ohio Department of Behavioral Health issued this statement: “As a policy, DBH does not comment on pending investigations.”

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