HOUSTON – A 23-year veteran Houston police sergeant is accused of sexually assaulting a child.
Hedwig Village Police Department, Houston Police Sgt. Tung Tran was arrested on Tuesday and charged with two counts of sexual assault of a child and two counts of indecency with a child, Finner announced on Wednesday via the HPD Twitter account.
Statement from Police Chief @TroyFinner on arrest of an HPD officer:#hounews pic.twitter.com/4xJqpGwMyk
— Houston Police (@houstonpolice) November 3, 2021
Finner shared this statement:
“Following a criminal investigation conducted by the Hedwig Village Police Department, Houston Police Sgt. Tung Tran was arrested on Tuesday (Nov. 2) and charged with sexual assault of a child and indecency with a child.
“I am deeply troubled by the alleged actions of this 23-year veteran HPD employee, who was immediately relieved of duty when the accusations were brought to our attention.
“The Hedwig Village Police Department is conducting the criminal investigation into this matter and the HPD Internal Affairs Division is conducting an administrative investigation.
“Due to the ongoing investigations, I want to respect the judicial process and will not comment further.”
Tran went before a probable cause court judge Wednesday, where he learned of his charges and why prosecutors were against a low bond.
“I do have concerns for this complaining witness based on the grooming behavior that was described by both the complaining witness as well as her parents based on the text messages that were recovered from her phone,” prosecutors said. “And based on the defendants status in the community as a police officer i don’t believe low bonds are reasonable.”
Tran’s bond was set at a collective $260,000 for the four charges. An emergency protection order was also granted prohibiting Tran from having contact with the victim or her family.
Hedwig Village Police chief David Gott said this past September his officers were notified about a possible sexual assault involving a 13-year-old girl Tran knows. The 50-year-old former sergeant is accused of sexually assaulting the teen girl in December of 2020 and physically molesting her in March of 2021., according to court documents.
Gott said Tran refused to talk to investigators when he was arrested Tuesday. He also said it doesn’t appear Tran used his status as a police officer to commit the crime.