Conn. police officer arrested for alleged sex assault in Block Island

A Hartford police officer was arrested on sex assault charges in an alleged incident that happened in Block Island over the weekend, police said.

The police department said Justin Damone, 25, who was off-duty at the time, was charged with sexual assault from an incident that happened at Ballard's Beach Club.

He has been charged with first-degree sexual assault, according to a court document.

In a statement, Ballard's owner Steven Filippi said a woman told the security team that a man had inappropriately touched her while on the restaurant property.

"Ballard’s - which employs a full-time team of trained security professionals led by a former police chief - has zero tolerance for any behavior that could affect the safety or well-being of guests or staff. We will continue to cooperate fully with state and local law enforcement as they investigate this allegation," Filippi said.

Hartford Police Chief Jason Thody released a statement on Tuesday saying:

"The Hartford Police Department is a law enforcement agency that takes our law enforcement responsibilities extremely seriously, and never more so than when there are allegations of criminal conduct by one our own officers. Following Officer Damone’s arrest in Rhode Island, he was immediately suspended without pay, pending both criminal and administrative investigations.”

Thody said the police department has also opened an internal affairs investigation.

Damone is a four-year veteran of the police department, according to authorities.

The Hartford Police Department said they were notified of the incident by Rhode Island State Police. An investigation is underway.