Terri Sanginiti

The News Journal

This story was first published May 2, 2013.

A prosecutor with the Delaware Attorney General's Office has been accused of sexually assaulting a 16-year-old boy, New Castle County police said.

Daniel Simmons, 34, a deputy attorney general assigned to the New Castle County Misdemeanor Trial Unit, was charged Friday with four counts of fourth-degree rape, said Officer Tracey Duffy.

The investigation began in March after police learned of the incidents involving the boy, who Simmons made contact with through a social media app, Duffy said.

Simmons was identified as the perpetrator early in the investigation, she said.

The state Attorney General's Office was notified of the investigation's conclusion on Friday and quickly approved warrants for Simmons' arrest.

The investigation determined that Simmons met the boy through a social media app known as "Grindr," and not through his dealings with the public as a prosecutor, Duffy said.

A statement released Friday night by the state Attorney General's Office said Simmons has been placed on administrative leave.

"These charges are serious and will be addressed through the criminal justice system," said agency spokesman Jason Miller.

Bail information was not immediately available Friday night. Police urge parents to monitor the social media and internet activities of their children.

Anyone with information about Simmons or other such victims is asked to call Detective E. Sherkey at (302) 395-8110 or visit: www.nccpd.com.

Tips also may be offered through Delaware Crime Stoppers, which offers rewards, at (800) TIP-3333 or www.tipsubmit.com

As state Attorney General, Beau Biden in 2007 established the state Child Predator Unit within the Attorney General's Office with investigators who concentrated on proactively identifying child predators over the internet, while aggressively investigating and prosecuting traditional crimes against children.

Biden is quoted in a March 15, 2007, Delaware Voice column as saying the reason he ran for state Attorney General was to attack the problem of child sex abuse by creating the Child Predator Unit.

He issued no comments Friday about a prosecutor in his office being charged with such predatory behavior.

Contact Terri Sanginiti at (302) 324-2771 or tsanginiti@delawareonline.com