Former Preble County SRO gets prison for sexual battery of student

ajc.com

A former Preble County Sheriff’s deputy and school resource officer has been sentenced to prison after he had a sexual relationship with a student.

Mason Williams, 26, of Eaton, was sentenced by Preble County Common Pleas Judge Stephen Bruns to 18 months in prison for two counts of sexual battery and one count of tampering with evidence. He was also designated a Tier III sexual offender, the highest level, and will have to register every 90 days for the rest of his life.

At the time of writing, Williams was booked in the Preble County Jail.

Mason Williams

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Williams was previously a SRO at National Trail High School in Jefferson Twp., Preble County.

An investigation began into Williams in March after school officials notified the sheriff’s office of alleged unprofessional conduct by Williams, according to Preble County Sheriff Michael Simpson earlier this year.

“It was learned that a school resource officer assigned to the National Trail Local Schools was alleged to be involved in a consensual relationship with an 18-year-old student outside of the school setting,” Simpson said.

The investigation was conducted by the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and prosecuted by the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.

Investigators determined that Williams deleted electronic correspondence with the student, leading to the tampering with evidence charge, the Ohio Attorney General’s Office said.

No other students were believed to be involved.

Williams was placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation and resigned on April 1. He had been with the sheriff’s office since 2019.

Staff writers Aimee Hancock and Kristen Spicker contributed to this report.

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