Ex-Banning Police Officer Denies Sex With Minor

BANNING, CA — A former Banning Police Officer charged with several felony counts in connection with alleged sex with a minor pleaded not guilty this week and remains out of custody pending his next court hearing.

Christopher John Sayeski, 39, was arraigned Monday and pleaded not guilty to distributing harmful material to a minor, using a minor for obscene material, sexual penetration of a foreign object with a person under 18 years of age, and two counts of oral copulation with a minor under 18, court records show. All charges are felonies.

Sayeski is scheduled for a felony settlement conference on May 12.

Sayeski was released from custody Feb. 3 on a $10,000 bail bond, according to jail records. He was arrested by Riverside County Sheriff's investigators at approximately 8:24 a.m. that same day and booked into Banning's Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility on suspicion of distributing harmful matter to a minor and using an underage person for obscene material.

The investigation was turned over to the Riverside County District Attorney's Office and prosecutors decided to pursue additional charges.

Following his arrest, Sayeski resigned on Feb. 11 from the Banning Police Department, according to the department.

"The Banning Police Department is fully cooperating with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department and the Riverside County District Attorney's Office in their investigation of this matter," the Banning Police Department said in a news release. "The Banning Police Department remains committed to the uncompromised integrity of its officers and it will take all appropriate actions to ensure the public's trust in its law enforcement agency."