Former Philadelphia Cop Held on $60 Million Bail for Sexual Assault

He was charged with 32 crimes total.

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A former Philadelphia police officer who was once considered a hero is now being held on $60 million bail after being charged for raping two women at gunpoint. According to NBC Philadelphia, 27-year-old Richard DeCoatsworth forced one of the women into committing acts of prostitution two weeks ago and then forced her and another woman to perform oral sex on him while threatening them with a gun. The $60 million bail is one of the highest in the history of the city.

On Saturday, DeCoatsworth was officially charged with sexual assault, rape and terroristic threats. Drugs and guns were also discovered in his home by Philadelphia police. In addition to having his bail set at $25 million for crimes against each victim, another $10 million was added to that for allegedly assaulting his live-in girlfriend on May 9. 

DeCoatsworth acquired the hero tag back in 2007 when, as a rookie cop, he chased down a suspect who had shot him in the face and was able to radio in enough information for officers to arrest the suspect that same day. For his bravery, Vice President Joe Biden invited him to attend the first congressional address in Feb. 2009 where he sat next to First Lady Michelle Obama.

Since then, DeCoatsworth's background has been checkered. In 2009, he was involved in two shootings, one of which left a suspect dead. In one of the incidents, witnesses claimed that DeCoatsworth and a fellow officer acted recklessly, harassing suspects who had done nothing wrong.

He was part of an Internal Affairs investigation in Nov. 2011 regarding a fight between he and another officer. He reportedly racked up nine citizens complaints during his time as a Philadelphia police officer before officially retiring due to disability in December 2011.

[via NBC Philadelphia]

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