Portage County sheriff's deputy under investigation for alleged rape in Cuyahoga County

A Portage County sheriff's deputy is under investigation for an alleged sexual assault in Lyndhurst in October.

Portage County Sheriff's Chief Deputy Ralph Spidalieri said Friday that the sheriff's office has not been told very much about the investigation.

"We're being told that information has been relayed to the prosecutor's office in Cuyahoga County," Spidalieri said.

Since the deputy has not been charged, Spidalieri declined to identify him.

More:Mantua Township teen accused of raping 5-year-old girl

"If there is an indictment, we will release the name," said Spidalieri.

The deputy has been placed on paid administrative leave pending outcome of the investigation, Spidalieri said.

According to a brief incident report provided by Lyndhurst police, the alleged incident, identified as a "call type: rape," occurred between 1 and 2 a.m. on Oct. 19. Spidalieri said the deputy was off duty at that time.

More:'A new level of sickness': Kent man sentenced for extorting kids worldwide for nude photos

Lyndhurst Police Lt. Michael Scipione, the department's detective bureau commander, also declined to identify the deputy.

The alleged victim is identified as a female in the report, but other information is redacted. Scipione declined to provide her age, but said she is an adult.

The Record-Courier does not identify alleged rape victims.

Scipione said results of an investigation were turned over to the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor's Office for review several weeks ago. Scipione said he anticipates the review will be completed by the end of March, at which time, the prosecutor's office will decide whether it will present the case to a grand jury for possible indictment.

The prosecutor's office did not immediately respond to a request for additional information and comment.

Spidalieri said that if the deputy is indicted, the sheriff's office will have its own decision to make, which could include firing the deputy.

"We would probably look to put him on either an unpaid admin leave or work to figure out if there's the possibility that he would be dismissed," he said.

Spidalieri declined to comment further.

"At this point in time, to maintain the integrity of the investigation, we just basically are letting that play out however they feel necessary," he said.

Reporter Jeff Saunders can be reached at jsaunders@recordpub.com.

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Portage County sheriff's deputy under investigation for alleged rape