Charlotte Police Officer Charged With Sexual Battery: CMPD

CHARLOTTE, NC — A Charlotte police officer has been charged with sexual battery following a report from a woman that he touched her inappropriately at an uptown nightclub while he was off-duty, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department said Tuesday.

The woman made the report around 1:30 a.m. Jan. 27, and officers working off-duty outside the nightclub located at 116 W. 5th Street recognized the person as CMPD officer Michael Santiago.

CMPD detectives launched an investigation and, after gathering evidence and conducting interviews, presented the case to a magistrate, and a criminal summons was issued Tuesday afternoon.

“I am disappointed by this incident,” CMPD Chief Kerr Putney said Tuesday. “As officers, we uphold the law and absolutely will not tolerate one of our own violating it. Officers who disregard the law will be held accountable for their actions.”

Santiago, 30, has been employed by CMPD for more than two years and is assigned as a patrol officer in the Central Division. He has been placed on unpaid administrative leave, CMPD said. CMPD has also launched a separate internal investigation to determine if any department policies or procedures were violated, which is standard procedure when an officer is accused of a crime, CMPD said.

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