L.A. County sheriff’s deputy accused of having sex with teenage girl

A veteran Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputy was arrested for allegedly having sex with a teenage girl, authorities said Thursday night.

John Augustus Rose, 43, is suspected of having sex with the girl while he was off duty between February and June, authorities said.

Authorities said in a statement that they launched an investigation after they were alerted about Rose on Saturday by the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

Rose has been with the department for 22 years. He was most recently assigned to the Community Oriented Policing Services Bureau, which aims to help residents by taking a “holistic approach to problem-oriented policing,” according to the department.

“As soon as we heard about it, we investigated it,” department spokesman Steve Whitmore told The Times.

He said Rose is “well thought of” in the department. “But this is obviously just inexcusable,” Whitmore added.

Rose was relieved of duty Thursday without pay. He was arrested at 5:30 p.m. and was being held on $325,000 bail.

Whitmore said the department was planning to present its evidence Friday to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.

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