Officer Charged With Assaulting Informant Resigns
RENTON, Wash. (AP) – Police say a Renton police officer accused of slapping and groping a confidential informant has resigned.
The Seattle Times reports the department announced Tanuj Soni’s resignation in a statement Thursday.
Soni, who had been a Renton officer for eight years, was charged with assault with sexual motivation and abuse of office in King County Superior Court.
Prosecutors say Soni asked a confidential informant to meet him in a Des Moines park Aug. 10, telling her he needed to discuss something important related to a case.
Charging documents say the woman reported Soni told her to drink and asked her to take off her clothes, then slapped her face and buttocks and grabbed her genitals. Charges say she told police she was too afraid to resist but eventually ran to a nearby home.
Soni was placed on administrative leave and police launched an internal investigation which found policies had been violated.
Soni resigned before the internal investigation ended.