Former Wheeling police officer behind bars
Jonathan Q. Wiles, former police officer in Wheeling, W. Va., was arrested after admitting he raped a 9-year-old girl.
Johnathan Q. Wiles was arrested by West Virignia State Police on Dec. 7, 2021, after he admitted to raping a 9-year old girl. A former officer for the Wheeling Police Department, Wiles found guilty on March 28, 2022, of sexual abuse by a parent or custodian and one count of incest. He was sentenced to 25-55 years in prison. He will also register as a life-long sex offender once released from prison.
According to WTRF-7 News Reporter, D.K. Wright, police say the girl was interviewed at Harmony House where she stated Wiles touched her in the private area three times and possibly more than five, while pointing to her vagnial area.
“Allegedly, the complainant also told police that she confronted Wiles and he admitted that the rape happened and that he was ‘in a dark place at the time, and said he would get help and that he was sick,’” 7 News reported.
After interviewing with police, Wiles admitted to touching the bare vagnia of the girl on three occasions saying he is a monster and knows what he did was wrong.
Wheeling Police Chief, Shawn Schwertfeger said:
“The Wheeling Police Department was made aware of serious allegations involvoing one of its officers by the West Virignia State Police this past weekend. That officer is no longer employeed by the department as of Monday morning. I am fully aware of the seriousness of these charges, and although shocked, I am grateful that there was a rapid resoultuion with the saftey of a child in mind. Out of respect for the criminal invesitgation, we cannot offer further comment,”
- CHIEF SHAWN SCHWERTFEGER
Wiles sent the following text to the complainant:
“I know you don’t want to hear from me and you can ignore this text if you want. I just want to say that I know what I did was extremely wrong and I can’t do anything to change what happened. I am extremely sorry for what I did. I deserve anything that I get. I’m not going to do anything to harm myself. I still love you and the kids more than anything in this entire world. I know that time will never heal the damage that I did but I hope you all can return to a normal life at some point. I am a terrible person and will forever think of myself as one regardless of the good I do in my lifetime. I just hope at some point in this life I can try and make things right. I love you guys and miss you all so much already. I won’t message you again unless you initiate the conversation. I’m sorry (Name removed)”
- TEXT WILES SENT TO COMPLAINANT
I got to speak with D.K. Wiright about her experiences while reporting on this case. Now, D.K. has been a reporter for nearly 42 years, so she has an abundance of experience as a journalist.
“There was a deep sadness on the part of the people who appeared to be Wiles’ family members,” Wright said. She continued on saying that a women (perhaps his mother) was “weaping” periodically, while another woman looked angusihed.
A “clear frustartion” was present in the court room during Wiles’ hearing as their were issues with the video connection from the Northern Regional Jail (NRJ), where the defendant is currently being held on a $90,000 bond. Apparently, NRJ didn’t know Wiles was on the video list for that day, causing confusion.
"Cases of sex crimes against children are always heartbreaking and unfathomable. The only coping strategy I can offer is to focus on the job at hand…”
- D.K. WRIGHT, WTRF-7 NEWS REPORTER
Stay with 7 News for updates.