Summary
Dean Millsaps was a Mormon church member and retired police officer in Mesa, Arizona.
In 2013, Millsaps was arrested and charged with multiple felonies related to child sexual abuse.
In 2016, Millsaps was convicted and sentenced to 323 years in prison.
One victim alleged that Dean Millsaps sexually abused him between about 1997 and 1999 “when Millsaps volunteered to drive him to collect tithes from members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.” (source: Arizona Republic)
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- Criminal: Convicted, Prison,
- Civil: No civil case,
- Positions: Other leader,
- During crime: Other leader,
- When accused: Unknown position,
- Crime: 1990s, 2010s, in Arizona,
- Convicted: 2010s, 2016,
- Crime scenes: LDS activity,
- Victims: 2 victims, Multiple victims,
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Born: 1947
- AKA Dean Millsaps
- Mission: no
- Places: Arizona,
Sources
- Russell Millsaps, Ex-Mesa Cop, Accused of Molesting Kids and Sharing Child Porn,
- Russell Millsaps, Ex-Mesa Cop Accused of Molesting Kids, Pleads Not Guilty,
- Trial starts for retired Mesa police sergeant accused of child-sex crimes,
- Retired Mesa Police Sergeant Sentenced To 323 Years For Child Molestation,
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1. Russell Millsaps, Ex-Mesa Cop, Accused of Molesting Kids and Sharing Child Porn
A retired Mesa cop is accused of molesting two kids, as well as sharing child porn with a man who was recently arrested in a Homeland Security investigation.
Search warrants served in the case provided police with several allegedly smoking guns, like the picture of Millsaps ejaculating into Hello Kitty underwear -- underwear that was recovered from the home of the victims, who are 4 and 7 years old, according to court documents obtained by New Times.
According to those documents, Homeland Security agents informed Mesa detectives about a recent child-porn arrest, in which their suspect was e-mailing MIllsaps, who turned 66 a little more than a week ago.
A search warrant was served at Millsaps' Mesa home, and police say images that are "easily classified" as child porn were immediately found on Millsaps' cellphone.
Police also found nude pictures of Millsaps on the phone, as well as the computer, including the aforementioned child's Hello Kitty underwear.
According to court documents, a distinct mole on Millsaps' hand is captured in that image.
Millsaps, who's lived with his wife for the last 40 years, has "consistent access" to the 4- and 7-year-old children, who were identified in the investigation, and interviewed by detectives.
The 4-year-old girl said Millsaps had taken naked pictures of her, according to the documents. The 7-year-old girl also described acts of molestation, per the documents.
It appears that Millsaps had been describing his alleged molesting of the children to the man whom he shared his child porn with.
"These acts are consistent with acts described in the emails between an email address which returns with an I.P. address at the defendant's home and the email address used by the suspect already arrested in another state," a probable-cause statement says.
It's not said whether the children allegedly molested by Millsaps are believed to be depicted in the child-porn images.
Millsaps was booked into jail on charges of child molestation and sexual exploitation of a minor.
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2. Russell Millsaps, Ex-Mesa Cop Accused of Molesting Kids, Pleads Not Guilty
A retired Mesa cop accused of molesting two kids and sharing child porn with a man who recently was arrested in a Homeland Security investigation has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him.
Russell Millsaps, also known as Dean Millsaps, 66, was arrested by Mesa detectives a couple of weeks ago, after Homeland Security agents informed Mesa detectives about a recent child-porn arrest, in which their suspect was e-mailing Millsaps.
Search warrants served in the case provided police with several smoking guns, like the picture of Millsaps ejaculating into Hello Kitty underwear -- underwear that was recovered from the home of two molestation victims, ages 4 and 7, according to court documents previously obtained by New Times.
A search warrant was served at Millsaps' Mesa home after Mesa detectives got that information from Homeland Security, and police say images that are "easily classified" as child porn were immediately found on Millsaps' cellphone.
Police also found nude pictures of Millsaps on the phone, as well as the computer, including the aforementioned child's Hello Kitty underwear.
According to court documents, a distinct mole on Millsaps' hand is captured in that image.
Millsaps, who's lived with his wife for the past 40 years, has "consistent access" to the 4- and 7-year-old children who were identified in the investigation and interviewed by detectives.
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3. Trial starts for retired Mesa police sergeant accused of child-sex crimes
Attorneys made opening statements Tuesday morning in the trial of a retired Mesa police sergeant who is pleading not guilty to allegations of molesting two young girls and to exchanging child pornography with a man previously arrested in a Homeland Security investigation.
Russell Millsaps, known by his middle name, Dean, was charged with 28 counts of sex crimes against children, including child molestation, sexual conduct with a minor and sexual exploitation of a minor.
Prosecuting attorney Erin Pedicone cited manipulation at the forefront of the case. She said Millsaps, 69, manipulated his victims, church members and authorities with his position in the community to keep his perverse actions from being exposed.
When defense attorney Daniela De La Torre took to the podium, she reminded the 15 jurors and alternates to put aside "inflammatory allegations” and focus on the facts of the investigation to provide a fair trial. She also addressed Millsaps' history with the Mesa police and cast doubt on the accuracy of a new witness.
Pedicone said detectives found suggestive photos of children on Millsaps' phone. The prosecution also included a January 2015 report from a 30-year-old man who said Millsaps molested him when he was 12 to 14 years old. According to Pedicone, the man said the abuse occurred when Millsaps volunteered to drive him to collect tithes from members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
De La Torre called into question the lengthy forensic interviews with the three children involved. She said the 4-year-old victim, interviewed last, was the only victim who disclosed being molested. De La Torre said this prompted a second interview for the 7-year-old victim, where she then said Millsaps molested her.
De La Torre said the “intelligent” children were “100 percent committed to their stories,” explaining that often when younger children repeat stories enough, they begin to believe what they’re saying.
The victims’ recount of their abuse was not the only disclosure over which De La Torre expressed concern.
She said the 30-year-old man who said Millsaps molested him made the claim in counseling after being released from prison on a sex-related charge, and that his account was riddled with inaccuracies.
Mesa police arrested Millsaps in March 2013 after detectives served a search warrant in the 900 block of East Fairfield Street, Mesa police spokesman Sgt. Tony Landato said at the time.
“We have the same revulsion as anyone with a crime against a child. It only compounds it’’ when the suspect is a former officer, Landato said at the time of the arrest.
He said Millsaps was a longtime patrol sergeant who had retired from the Mesa Police Department in 1995 after working for more than 25 years as an officer.
At the trial, De La Torre said toward the end of Millsaps' career he found himself at odds with “higher-ups” — the same "enemies" who she said showed up on his doorstep years later.
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4. Retired Mesa Police Sergeant Sentenced To 323 Years For Child Molestation
A retired Mesa police sergeant, Russell Dean Millsaps, age 69, was sentenced to 323 years in prison following his conviction on child exploitation charges stemming from a probe by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and the Mesa Police Department.
Millsaps was sentenced July 1 by Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Joseph P. Mikitish on multiple counts of child molestation, crimes against children, and sexual exploitation of a minor. The case against Millsaps was prosecuted by Rebecca Jones of the Superior Court of Arizona, Maricopa County.
The probe targeting Millsaps began in 2013 after HSI special agents in New Orleans alerted local investigators about a Mesa man who responded to an internet advertisement soliciting images of children being sexually exploited. Further investigation resulted in the execution of a search warrant at Millsaps’ Mesa residence, where authorities seized hundreds of images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children that he was sending over the internet.
On March 14, 2013, Millsaps was arrested and held without bond. Over the course of the investigation, authorities identified multiple minor victims.
Documents
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Criminal case documents
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