ROSELAND, N.J. (1010 WINS) -- A New Jersey police officer has been arrested and charged with repeatedly sexually assaulting a minor, as well as soliciting a prostitute, prosecutors say.
Roseland Police Officer Richard Haffner, 43, of West Caldwell, was arrested and charged with aggravated sexual assault, endangering the welfare of a minor and witness tampering on Wednesday, the Essex County Prosecutor’s office said in a press release.
Haffner is accused of sexually assaulting a minor on several occasions between April 2019 and February of this year, prosecutors said.
NJ.com reported that the victim is a girl who worked for Haffner at The Chicken Factory, a restaurant he runs in Roseland. The abuse allegedly began when the girl was 15, the outlet reported.
Haffner has reportedly been suspended from the Roseland Police Department without pay.
Investigators believe Haffner was off-duty when the assaults happened, the prosecutor’s office said. He also faces separate charges for soliciting a prostitute, according to prosecutors.
His attorney information wasn’t immediately available Wednesday.