Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- Salt Lake police officer Zander Nunley was arrested and accused of rape on a Hinge date.
- The woman reported the alleged assault and underwent a rape kit at a hospital.
- Nunley has been placed on paid administrative leave pending investigation.
SALT LAKE CITY — A Salt Lake police officer has been placed on leave after a woman he allegedly met on the dating app Hinge said he raped her during a date Sunday night.
Zander Nunley, 26, was arrested for investigation of aggravated assault, forcible sex abuse, forcible sodomy and object rape.
"On Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024, the Salt Lake City Police Department received information about a criminal investigation and the arrest of one of our officers. Upon learning of this information, the SLCPD promptly placed the officer on paid administrative leave," Brent Weisberg, spokesman for the Salt Lake City Police Department, said in a prepared statement.
"The allegations in this case are serious and conflict with our core values," he said.
At 6:16 p.m. Monday, the woman got a rape kit performed at a hospital and reported an assault to a forensic nurse after she said she was assaulted at a townhome in American Fork the previous night.
The woman said she met Nunley on the dating app Hinge and communicated with him for two to three weeks before they met in person. She said Nunley invited her to his home in American Fork to watch a religious Christmas devotional, according to a police booking affidavit.
The woman said when she got to his home, he told her that he had "put all of his firearms away. The victim said that Zander was a police officer and knew she didn't like firearms from a previous text conversation," the affidavit states.
She said they started watching the devotional while sitting together on a bean bag, and he soon "began kissing her. The victim reported that Zander was kissing her very aggressively as if he didn't know his own strength," the affidavit says.
The woman said Nunley continued to touch her inappropriately as she told him "no," according to the arrest report.
"The victim reported that Zander then asked if she would like to go into his room as they would be more comfortable. The victim said she didn't know if it was because she was feeling intimidated or nervous, but she eventually agreed to go with him. The victim reported that once they got to Zander's bedroom, he got much more physical with her and took her clothes off," the police affidavit alleges.
The woman reported Nunley proceeded to assault her, according to the affidavit, and she said she tried "to pull Zander off her, but she wasn't able to."
"The victim reported, she began telling Zander she didn't want him to do that, but he cut her off and continued despite her protest," the affidavit states.
After, the woman said Nunley told her: "Look, you had a gun right next to you while you were doing that."
She also told the forensic nurse that Nunley bit her neck "very hard to the point of bruising" and that he choked her "to the point it did impact her breathing," according to the arrest report.
The woman also had bruises on her breast and abdomen, police said.
As of Thursday, no criminal charges had been filed in the case.
