A day after he agreed to plead guilty to federal charges for sexually assaulting women while on duty, suspended police officer Mark Icker was hit with a new federal lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges Icker arrested the victim in June 2018 for allegedly driving under the influence in Ashley, drove her home to Mountain Top after taking her for blood testing and then fondled her inside her residence.
Attorneys for the woman say she is one of four women Icker sexually assaulted in Luzerne County while working as an Ashley police officer in 2018. Icker also is facing charges for similar alleged conduct in Dickson City.
According to Icker’s federal plea, he has agreed to serve 12 years in federal prison. The state charges are still unresolved.
In the lawsuit filed Friday, the woman claims Icker pulled her over on Route 309 in Ashley for speeding while she was driving home from a bar. The woman said Icker illegally searched her vehicle looking for drugs and when he found none, he made her exit the vehicle to submit to a breath test.
Icker told the woman she failed and arrested her, the lawsuit says.
After blood testing at a local hospital, Icker volunteered to drive her home to Mountain Top.
Upon arrival at her house, Icker asked the woman if he could use her bathroom — an alleged tactic other women have alleged. She said she allowed him inside. Once inside, Icker wouldn’t leave and eventually pulled down the woman’s shirt and fondled her breasts, the lawsuit says.
“She had no idea what to do or how to get this armed police officer out of her home and to stop him from sexually assaulting her,” the lawsuit says.
Icker stayed inside the home for hours against her wishes and repeatedly pressured the woman to go on a date with him, the lawsuit says.
The woman said she couldn’t call for help because Icker had left her phone in his patrol car.
Eventually, Icker agreed to leave and give her phone back, the lawsuit says.
Over the next few months, Icker repeatedly sent text messages to the woman asking for sexual favors while reminding her he had up to two years to file charges against her.
It’s unclear if the woman was ever charged — or if her blood alcohol concentration was over the legal limit.
Icker continued to text the woman until his first arrest in December 2018 for sexually assaulting a different woman while on duty, the lawsuit says.
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bkalinowski@citizensvoice.com
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