Vernon Special Needs Service Staffer Charged With Sexual Assault

VERNON, CT — Vernon police have charged a 61-year-old man with four sexual assault crimes for what a warrant descibes as lewd activity with a 28-year-old special needs woman.

James Dumas, whose listed address is in Ellington, was arrested on Tuesday. He was charged with three counts of fourth-degree sexual assault and a single count of second-degree sexual assault, according to a warrant.

He was held on a $150,000 bond, police said.

Police were alerted to an illicit relationship between Dumas, who is also knwn as "Wiley," at the Opportunity Works job placement service on West Main Street in Vernon, according to a warrant. Dumas was a staff member with the title of client manager, according to a warrant.

Dumas is accused of forging a sexual relationship with the woman via about 40 explicit text messages, according to a warrant.

He then engaged in a series of physical advances that began with kissing and him giving the woman a "hickey" and progressed to at least touching with both his hands and mouth, according to a warrant. One time, he brought the woman into a closet, a warrant states.

He wanted to make the woman his "porn star," according to a warrant.

Police described the victim in a warrant as "developmentally delayed" with an IQ of 69. Dumas has a history of discipline at the agency for inappropriate behavior, according to a warrant.

Dumas could have texted other clients with similar messages, according to a warrant. State money funds his program, according to a warrant.