An Essex County Sheriff's officer, Dinis Oliveira pleaded guilty to a criminal coercion charge
Dinis Oliveira (Photo courtesy Essex County Correctional Facility) NEWARK -- An Essex County Sheriff's officer has pleaded guilty to using his badge last year to coerce a prostitute into providing him with sexual favors, authorities said.
Dinis Oliveira, 32, of Newark, pleaded guilty on March 4 in Hudson County to a third-degree criminal coercion charge in connection with the Feb. 26, 2015 incident in Newark, court records show.
Under the terms of a plea agreement, Oliveira is expected to be sentenced to probation and he must give up his job and forfeit his pension, according to Katherine Carter, spokeswoman for the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.
His sentencing is scheduled for April 22 before Superior Court Judge Paul M. DePascale.
Oliveira had been charged with sexual assault, official misconduct and criminal coercion. The case was transferred to Hudson County, because of Oliveira's position with the Essex County Sheriff's Department.
Oliveira, who joined the department in June 2014, has been suspended without pay pending the outcome of his case.
Law enforcement sources have said Oliveira contacted the Newark woman by phone after seeing an advertisement posted on Backpage.com, and arranged a meeting with her.
During their encounter, Oliveira allegedly used both his badge and a handgun to intimidate the woman, and they then engaged in both oral and vaginal sex, according to a criminal complaint filed in Essex County Superior Court.
Two days later, the woman reported the alleged assault to authorities.
The woman also presented authorities with a condom she claimed Oliveira used during the assault, and she was taken to Newark Beth Israel Medical Center to be examined, sources previously said. At the hospital, the woman spotted Oliveira, who was there assisting a family member, and she alerted police.
Oliveira turned himself into the Essex County Prosecutor's Office and briefly remained in custody before posting $200,000 bail.
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