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CONROE, Texas - A former assistant police chief in Montgomery County has been charged with sexually assaulting children beginning back in 1998.
On Monday, Norman Wilkerson, Jr. pled guilty and was sentenced to 20 years in prison for four cases of sexual abuse of children between the ages of 10-16 from 1998 to 2004. Wilkerson was the Assistant Chief of Police at the Cut and Shoot Police Department in Cut and Shoot near Conroe at the time.
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"I suspect this man thought he would never be accountable for his crimes, but justice, though it came slowly, came with certainty. I suspect he also believed that his position in law enforcement would somehow protect him, but now he knows that no occupation of any kind will ever excuse the execution of justice when it arrives," said Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon.
Reports say Montgomery County Sheriff's Office Detective Michael Lee with the Special Victims Unit began investigating after an anonymous letter was sent to multiple law enforcement agencies detailing the sexual abuse and actions towards children by Wilkerson. Eventually, one of the agencies sent the letter to MCSO after determining the jurisdiction for the allegations.
Norman Wilkerson, Jr. (Photo Courtesy of Montgomery County Sheriff's Office)
Detective Lee was able to locate victims across the country to corroborate and confirm the decades-long sexual abuse.
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Officials say after charges were filed and Wilkerson was arrested, additional victims came forward with accounts of abuse.
Chief Prosecutor Lisa Stewart said, "For decades, these victims wondered if a police officer in such a position of power would ever pay for what he did to them as children. Now, as they described, they can finally live their lives free of the fear that he will be hurting more children."
Montogomery county officials say they guided and consulted with the victims during the two years following Wilkerson’s arrest.
On Jan. 26, multiple victims were said to be present to see Wilkerson plead guilty and be taken into custody after decades. Reports say they were also able to give victim impact statements in court about the effects of his crimes.
Wilkerson was charged with one count of Aggravated Sexual Assault of a Child and three counts of Sexual Assault of a Child. He will serve 20 years for each charge consecutively.
The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office, Texas Rangers, and Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office provided evidence and support necessary to bring these victims justice.