LMPD :: Louisville Metro Police Department
IMAGE

Man accused of groping conservation officer at state park

IMAGE
PHOTO
PHOTO

A man answered to charges against him Friday after police said he groped an undercover officer at a state park.

Officers with Indiana's Department of Natural Resources did a sting operation at the Clark State Forest last weekend after getting numerous complaints over the past couple of weeks.

Six people were arrested, one of them was a man who said he was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"I was in shock. I couldn't believe that I was set up," said the suspect, Sonny McIntosh.

McIntosh made a quick stop at the Clark State Forest not knowing he'd leave in handcuffs.

"I was just, feel like I was in the wrong place at the wrong time," said McIntosh.

He was arrested following a big sting by conservation officers, who were trying to uncover the sexual and drug-related activities allegedly happening at the park.

"It's a common known meeting place, hence the reason they think our undercover officers are there for the same reason, to engage in that illicit activity," said Indiana Conservation Officer Jim Schreck.

That undercover officer is who McIntosh ran into last weekend.

"Our officer sat on the picnic table, basically, and was approached by an individual that ultimately ended up groping our officer," said Schreck.

McIntosh didn't deny he met the officer, but he said the undercover cop may have been the one suggesting sex.

"The next thing I know, he was getting out of his truck and kind of encouraging me to come follow through visual cues. He stood at the back of his truck, and kind of looked back to see if I was going to follow," said McIntosh. "He led me to believe that something more was going to happen than what I had originally set out to do."

Five others were also arrested. Their charges range from public indecency to possession of marijuana.

But McIntosh said the charges against him are anything but fair.

"Do you deserve this?" WLKY's Jessica Oh asked McIntosh.

"No, I don't. (Nobody) deserves to be pulled into something," said McIntosh. "I'm completely sorry for my family, especially for my mother and my sisters."

Conservation officers want to emphasize that state parks are very safe.

They rarely do these kinds of investigations, but every time they get complaints, they follow up on them.

Over the course of two days, officers issued 13 warrants. Six of those people were arrested.