Deputy, accused molester, found dead

ALISO VIEJO, Calif., April 3 (UPI) -- An Orange County, Calif., sheriff's deputy was found dead hours after he was charged with molesting a boy he met through a mentoring program, officials said.

Gerald Stenger, 41, was on-duty when his body was found with a gunshot wound to the head Wednesday afternoon, in the driver's seat of a patrol car, the Los Angeles Times reported Thursday.

Stenger had been charged earlier in the day with molesting a 12-year-old boy from 1995-97. Investigators said Stenger met the boy through Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Orange County.

The Orange County District Attorney's office said it had concluded Stenger was a suicide risk if he discovered he was going to be charged with the offenses -- which could have landed him in prison for up to 18 years.

Prosecutors tried to keep Stenger from learning of the charges against him before he was arrested by sealing documents and arranging for what is known as a "safe" arrest Wednesday afternoon.