DOVER - For the second time in a year a Strafford County Jail correctional officer has been accused of sexual assault on a female inmate.
Anthony C. Ford, 37, of Dora Lane, Rochester, was recently indicted by a Strafford County grand jury on two counts of aggravated felonious sexual assault, one count of falsifying physical evidence and four Class A misdemeanors on charges of using his position of authority in coercing various sex acts from the same female prisoner.
According to the indictment, Ford "had direct superivory or disciplinary authority over (the victim) by virtue of (the victim) being incarcerated at the Strafford County House of Corrections."
All of the charges occurred between August 2022 and July 2023, the most serious of which are the two aggravated felonious sexual assault counts that carry a 10-20 year sentence apiece.
The falsifying physical evidence charge is also a felony that carries a three and a half to seven-year sentence, while the four misdemeanors each carry a 12-month stay in county jail.
The accusations against Ford come just a year after Patrick Schaeffer, 43, formerly of Old Turnpike Road, Nottingham, was indicted in October 2023 on three counts of Aggravated Felonious Sexual Assault and five counts of Felonious Sexual Assault.
In June he was indicted on additional counts of Aggravated Felonious Sexual Assault and Attempted Aggravated Felonious Sexual Assault.
His charges were elevated because Schaeffer, as a prison guard, was also in a position of authority over two victims he is accused of assaulting.
The two former prisoners filed lawsuits last month against the county, the jail and a former jail guard alleging he used his authority and position to sexually assault, and in one instance, rape one of the women. Nicholas Law Firm of Concord is representing both women, named Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2 in court paperwork.. Their names were sealed by the court.
The case involving Ford has been transferred to Rockingham County, while the other case involving the two victims has been transferred to Carroll County.
The Strafford County grand jury indictments were handed down on Oct. 17 and released to the public on Friday.
An indictment is not an indication of guilt, rather that enough evidence has been gathered to warrant moving forward to trial.