INDIANAPOLIS – Former Kokomo Police Department officer Sinmi Asomuyide, 33, has been sentenced to 40 years in federal prison, followed by three years of supervised release. In June 2026, Asomuyide was convicted following a five-day jury trial of Deprivation of Rights Under Color of Law, Witness Tampering, and Destruction of Records.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Asomuyide, then 31 years old, first encountered Minor #1, a 14-year-old girl, on June 30, 2024, while serving as a Kokomo Police Department (KPD) patrol officer. Earlier that day, Minor #1's father called 911 to report her as a runaway. Asomuyide and another KPD officer responded to the call and located Minor #1 at the home of another underage girl.
After taking Minor #1 into custody, Asomuyide transported her to the Kinsey Youth Center. As he entered the facility’s sallyport garage, he turned off his body-worn camera in violation of KPD policy. He then took Minor #1’s cellphone and used it to call his personal TextNow phone number before questioning her about her sexual history. During a pat-down search, Asomuyide discovered a vape pen in Minor #1’s back pocket. After entering the Youth Center, he escorted Minor #1 to a side room and told her he would contact her later to return the vape pen.
Minor #1 was eventually picked up from the Youth Center by a family friend, at the direction of her father. As she left, she sent Asomuyide the username for one of her social media accounts, and he responded by requesting her TikTok username. The two continued communicating by text message throughout the evening while Asomuyide completed the remainder of his shift, and Minor #1 remained under the impression that Asomuyide intended to return her vape pen.
Later that evening, Asoyumide took several steps to see Minor #1 while simultaneously covering his tracks. He returned to the KPD police station and requested overtime, stating that he would be finishing his paperwork from 10:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m., but instead left the station to pick up Minor #1. He arrived at the family friend’s apartment in his KPD uniform and demanded to speak to Minor #1 privately to determine where she should stay. Instead, Asoyumide handcuffed Minor #1 in the back of his squad car and drove to an empty warehouse parking lot, as shown by his squad car’s GPS data. He uncuffed the girl, moved her to the front seat and sexually assaulted her. After, Asoyumide put the handcuffs back on and drove the minor back to the apartment complex.
Minor #1 reported the assault to family members and law enforcement, prompting the Indiana State Police (ISP) to open an investigation. During a forensic examination of Asomuyide's patrol vehicle, investigators located a dried semen stain matching Asomuyide’s DNA on the center console.
Approximately one week after the assault, ISP detectives interviewed Asomuyide. During the interview, he falsely claimed that he never provided Minor #1 with his phone number, suggesting instead that she may have overheard him reciting it to a Kinsey Youth Center employee. He also falsely asserted that Minor #1 had contacted him on a work phone, even though KPD officers are not issued work phones.
A forensic examination of Asomuyide’s cell phone revealed that, within hours of the assault, he searched phrases including "how to delete text me account" and "TextNow delete account."
This is not Asomuyide’s first instance of sexual misconduct with a minor. He was previously employed as a police officer at the Portsmouth (Virginia) Police Department (PPD) and was forced to resign after an allegation that he had sexual intercourse with a 15-year-old while he was off duty. When he later applied to the Kokomo Police Department, he misrepresented what he did, stating that he was forced to resign from PPD because he was “hanging out” with a 17-year-old girl who told him that she was 19.
“The Department of Justice takes civil rights abuses seriously, including those committed by the small minority of police officers that betray public trust,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon. “This defendant will be held accountable for the kidnapping and sexual abuse of a child. We hope the victim will be able to recover and prosper despite this horrific episode.”
“This defendant exploited the badge in one of the worst ways imaginable,” said Tom Wheeler, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “What makes these crimes particularly disturbing is that he used the very tools, training, and authority entrusted to him as a police officer not only to assault a vulnerable child, but to try to conceal it. The evidence told a different story, and today's sentence sends a clear message that no one can use the authority of the badge as a shield from accountability.”
“The very people entrusted with protecting children must never become the ones who victimize them. This defendant preyed on a 14-year-old girl and then attempted to cover up his crimes,” said FBI Indianapolis Special Agent in Charge Timothy J. O’Malley. “That kind of calculated abuse is unconscionable. The FBI remains committed to protecting children and relentlessly pursuing those who prey on them.”
"The Indiana State Police aggressively investigates crimes committed against children, especially when perpetrated by individuals placed in positions of immense trust," said Captain Ron Galaviz, ISP Chief Public Information Officer. "It is unconscionable that someone in authority would abuse their power for personal gratification at the expense of an innocent child. We remain steadfast in our commitment to holding these abusers accountable and protecting the most vulnerable members of our communities."
Federal Bureau of Investigation, Indianapolis Division and Indiana State Police investigated this case. The sentence was imposed by Chief District Judge James R. Sweeney, II.
U.S. Attorney Wheeler thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney, Peter Blackett, Civil Rights Division Trial Attorney Anita Channapati, and former Senior Sex Crimes Counsel Tara Allison, as well as Victim Witness Coordinator, Stephanie Lloyd, for their work on this case.
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Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office — Southern District of Indiana — U.S. Department of Justice press release.