Former Kansas Police Officer Accused Of Being 'Serial Sexual Predator'

A former police officer in central Kansas is under arrest following a series of serious allegations.

Todd Allen, 51, was arrested on Wednesday afternoon on two dozen charges related to a series of sexual assaults and peeping incidents, according to the Hutchinson Police Department. Hutchinson Chief of Police Jeff Hooper announced the charges at a press conference the same day, referring to Allen as a “serial sexual predator."

According to The Hutchinson News, Allen joined the force in 1994, working as a D.A.R.E. officer from at least 1996 to 2001 before becoming a school resources officer in Hutchinson — which about 50 miles northwest of Wichita.

According to The News, the then-unpublicized series of sexual assaults occurred in Carey Park and Rice Park starting in 2012.

Hooper said that he became chief of the department in 2018 and was soon alerted to a sexual assault that investigators believed were part of that series.

Hooper held a press conference in November 2018 “designed to alert the public of potential dangers” in the community, hoping the new release of information could help residents take extra precautions.

At the time, Hooper said the victims were between the ages of 15 and 18, according to the Associated Press. The suspect, sometimes wearing a mask, would approach the victims as they sat in their vehicles and shine a light in their face. He would reportedly identify himself as a cop or a security officer, make them exit their vehicles and then sexually assault them.

“After that press conference, those sexual assaults ceased in our community,” said Hooper.

Allen also resigned from his position with the department soon after the press conference.

Investigators were then alerted to a series of so-called prowling incidents in Hutchinson between May 2019 and June 2022, which included “window-peeping.”

Hooper said they arrested a suspect “in the immediate area of one of those prowler calls” — though he stopped short of naming Allen as the person they placed in custody at that time. However, officials confirmed with The Hutchinson News that Allen lived in the neighborhood where the Peeping Tom was said to have committed his crimes.

Five victims were listed in this week's criminal complaint against Allen in connection with the prowling charges he faces.

Hooper said authorities with the criminal investigative division were then able to “gather enough information” to connect the prowler calls to the previous sexual assaults. Hooper declined to disclose how they narrowed in on Allen, but the District Attorney’s office formally charged him in the serial sexual assaults on Wednesday.

The charges he faces include two counts of rape, three counts of attempted rape, two counts of kidnapping, seven counts of aggravated sexual battery, one count of aggravated indecent liberties with a child, two counts of sexual battery and five counts of breach of privacy/eavesdropping.

On Wednesday, officials declined to list how many victims Allen is suspected of harming, claiming they still had yet to contact some of them. However, the criminal complaint obtained by The Hutchinson News listed 10 victims of sexual assault identified only by their initials.

Allen’s arrest could potentially clear as many as 17 unsolved cases.

Chief Hooper confirmed Allen was part of the Hutchinson Police Department when the crimes occurred between 2012 and 2018, emphasizing his employment was part of a prior administration.

“I am appalled and disgusted that somebody who is a suspect in these type of crimes and this type of behavior ever wore the uniform and this badge that I am honored to pin on my chest every day,” Hooper stated. “But I am very proud of this administration and all the men and women that diligently worked on these cases over the last decade and who today brought Mr. Allen to justice.”

Hooper said he had hoped to “change” the “culture” of their department when he took office in 2018.

Allen’s arrest, he added, reflects his mission to be a “premier police department” that would hold itself accountable, noting that some officers with the previous administration had since been terminated or had resigned from their positions.

Allen was booked into the Reno County Correctional Facility, where he is being held on $250,000 bond. He made his first court appearance on Thursday via video feed, according to CBS Wichita affiliate KWCH. It’s unclear whether or not he has retained an attorney and entered a plea, though he is scheduled for a hearing on Sept. 21.

Chief Hooper says there may still be more victims out there and encourages anyone with information to contact Sergeant Jones of the Hutchinson Police Department at 1-620-694-2822.