Chowchilla police officer arrested for having sex with a minor, investigators say

CHOWCHILLA, Calif. (KFSN) -- A Chowchilla school resource officer is in jail after allegedly having sexual intercourse with a minor.

Tyler Hormel, 35, was arrested by the Madera County Sheriff's Department on Monday for allegedly having sexual intercourse with a teenager. "These are pretty spectacular charges, I don't know how else to put that," said Jay Varney, Madera County Sheriff.

Hormel is a Chowchilla police officer and school resource officer for the Chowchilla Elementary School District. Deputies say Hormel spent 12 years on the force and is now on administrative leave after his arrest. "The initial allegation was about conduct that occurred during December of 2015," Varney explained.

That alleged incident, according to the sheriff's office, involved a teenager. "The person is a student at a school in Chowchilla," Varney said. "Not currently at one of the schools that he oversees."

Inmate information for Homel posted on the Madera County website shows his seven charges ranging from oral copulation to rape by force or fear.

Varney would not give specifics on where the inappropriate activity took place because of its ongoing investigation, but he did credit the Chowchilla Police Department for reaching out to them immediately after being informed of what happened. "The police department contacted us as soon as they heard the allegations and immediately went to work on it," Varney explained.

The sheriff's department said it wants to reassure the community that none of the alleged incidents happened at any of the schools Hormel worked at it.