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Former Wilkes-Barre police officer found not guilty on all counts

Robert Collins walked out of his trial at Mohegan Sun Arena a free man.

WILKES-BARRE TOWNSHIP, Pa. — After a week-long trial at Mohegan Sun Arena and six hours of deliberations, a jury found former Wilkes-Barre police officer Robert Collins not guilty on each of the dozens of charges he was facing.

"What I fought through for the past 19 months!"

That was Robert Collins, a former Wilkes-Barre police officer as he walked out of his trial at Mohegan Sun Arena, a free man.

Prosecutors from the state Attorney General's Office had argued that Collins abused his power as a police officer when he sexually assaulted women in his custody while on duty.

Seven women accused Collins, who all reportedly told investigators that Collins pulled them over, took them into custody in his police car, drove to a secluded area, and forced himself on them.

The defense said the women were making up the accusations because they could not remember the exact times and dates of the alleged assaults. 

The defense also brought up a civil suit filed by those women against Collins, saying they were just looking for a payday.

The jury must have agreed with the defense argument, finding Collins not guilty on each of the dozens of counts he faced, including felony rape, witness intimidation, and obstruction of justice.

As Collins left, he lashed out at those who brought the charges against him.

"It's ridiculous!" yelled Collins. "Me and my family have gone through hell over this. All these allegations trumped-up allegations. No investigation done. I'm lucky that my team, my attorney, Paul Walker, my investigators, and myself did the work that the state police should have done in the first place."

And the reason the trial was held here at Mohegan Sun Arena was to keep those involved in the trial, including the jury, compliant with social distancing.

 

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