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Vernon Township Officer Emanuel Rivera was responding to an early-morning incident on May 11, 2019, when he tracked down a female subject who was asked to leave the house and "engaged in illegal sexual contact through coercive means," Sussex County Prosecutor Francis A. Koch said Thursday.
Rivera, 36, who was accused of shooting a loose dog last year, is charged with fourth-degree criminal sexual contact, the prosecutor said.
A former six-year Paterson police veteran who joined the Vernon department in 2013, he's been suspended pending the outcome of the case.
Authorities asked that anyone with information that could help the ongoing investigation contact Sussex County Prosecutor's Lt. Nicholas Elmo: (973) 383-1570, ext. 4553.
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