Oxford, N.C. — After a former captain of the Henderson Police Department pleaded guilty to sexual battery against a minor, the 17-year-old victim shared his experience with WRAL News.
Tony Randall Pendergrass, 57, of Franklinton, had been charged with three counts of sexual battery, but he pleaded guilty Wednesday to only one as part of a deal. He was sentenced to 60 days in jail, which was suspended to five days behind bars and 24 months of unsupervised probation, and was fined $100.
Pendergrass also must register as a sex offender, and he is prohibited from contacting the teen or his family for five years.
Last year, the victim was just 16 when he was invited over to Pendergrass’ house for a party with other teens. It was that weekend, he says, that Pendergrass grabbed and touched him inappropriately three different times.
“What he did wasn’t right. It was unacceptable," the teen said.
He said Pendergrass would send him messages through an app that would later disappear. He was afraid to come forward because of the power of law enforcement, he added.
"My biggest fear, honestly, he was sworn to protect and serve. I didn’t think anyone would believe he would do something like that,” the teen said.
But he did tell his mom, who then told police, and the State Bureau of Investigation took it over.
Pendergrass resigned from the Henderson Police Department on July 13, about two weeks after the SBI started to investigate.
Requiring Pendergrass to register as a sex offender was the biggest part of the plea deal for the teen.
“Being a registered sex offender, it will be a lot harder to harm somebody, and knowing that really kept me pushing," he said.
During his interview with WRAL, the teen wanted to blame himself for not seeing the signs that something wasn’t right, such as Pendergrass sending him messages. Now, he wants to turn his attention to helping others who have been victimized.
"Take that step reach out to somebody. People can help you, they are there for you. I’m here for you if you want to reach out to me," he said.
Pendergrass was being held in the Granville County Detention Center.
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April 30, 2021 at 09:42AM
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