93.3 KWTO Keeping Watch Over the Ozarks
A now former prisoner transporter will spend several years in prison for allegedly raping a detainee at a rest stop in Joplin.
Investigators say 37-year-old Rogeric Hankins was transporting a female prisoner from a jail in Spokane, Washington to St. Paul, Minnesota in March of 2020.
During the drive, he stopped at a rest stop in Joplin. During the stop, prosecutors say Hankins forced the woman into a bathroom stall and sexually assaulted her.
Assistant Attorney General Kristin Clarke, who prosecuted the case, said Hankins, ” sexually abused and violently assaulted a woman in his custody, exploiting his authority and depriving this survivor of her constitutional right to bodily integrity.”
He was sentenced to nine years in prison. The company that employed Hankins, Inmate Services Corporation, fired Hankins shortly after the charges were filed.