ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — A former police officer with the North County Police Cooperative is now a suspected serial sex offender who preyed upon his prisoners, according to new federal court documents.
Marcellis Blackwell is now facing 21 felony charges after investigators said media reports resulted in a wave of new sexual assault allegations.
On Thursday, U.S. Attorney for Eastern Missouri Sayler Flemming announced Blackwell has been charged with 16 counts of deprivation of civil rights and five counts of altering records in a federal investigation. Some of those charges carry sentences of up to 10 years, and others carry sentences of up to 40 years.
The charges stem from alleged incidents between Nov. 8, 2022, and June 5, 2023, in which he allegedly sexually assaulted men he had handcuffed, according to court documents.
The North County Police Cooperative estimates he made more than 80 arrests and each of the alleged victims in this case were arrested or detained by Blackwell, according to the documents.
Federal prosecutors allege Blackwell took cellphone video of at least three of the victims during the alleged assaults, and police are trying to identify other unidentified arrestees and victims seen in the videos, according to court documents.
"The defendant blatantly abused his authority by sexually assaulting people he had arrested or detained," wrote Assistant U.S. Attorney Christine Krug as part of a motion to keep him detained before trial. "The defendant victimized people he thought would be less likely to report his behavior, especially those he told that he would ensure that their case would never reach the prosecutor’s desk for prosecution."
As an example, Krug said Blackwell "showed up uninvited" to visit one of his alleged victims in jail even though the victim told him he did not want to talk to him. When the alleged victim bonded out of jail, Blackwell appeared at the alleged victim's court date in Illinois, "when there was no reason, other than intimidation, for him to be present."
Blackwell then allegedly threatened to charge the victim's wife with a crime if the victim did not cooperate with him, according to the documents.
"Society has a right to expect more from people who are sworn to uphold the Constitution," Krug said in an interview with 5 On Your Side. "His victims were not able to defend themselves. They were handcuffed. They were detained. They were taken to places where they should not have been taken."
St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell's Office issued a charge of sodomy or attempted sodomy in June against Blackwell after Blackwell allegedly sexually assaulted a man after he took the man into custody.
In that case, prosecutors say Blackwell assaulted the victim inside his police car in the Normandy School District bus lot.
That charge, and the media coverage of it, led to seven other alleged victims coming forward to say Blackwell did similar things to them, according to a release from Fleming's office.
The release also said Blackwell's phone "contains videos of as-yet unidentified victims," and the FBI is now looking to identify those additional victims.
"We are not investigating the underlying cases that led to these victim's arrest by the defendant, we are investigating this officer's abuse of these prisoners," Jay Greenberg said Special Agent in Charge of the FBI St Louis Division said.
The release said Blackwell may also be known as Willis Green Overstreet III.
Prior to attending the police academy, Blackwell worked as an over-the-road truck driver and has few, if any, ties to the Eastern District of Missouri, according to federal prosecutors.
The FBI has set up a hotline for anyone with information regarding this case at 314-589-2682.
Krug said federal prosecutors have resources for survivors and dedicated victim advocates.
"In sex offenses, it is very difficult for victims to come forward," Krug said. "And the courage that the victims show in any sex offense crime is to be lauded because these are definitely offenders who should be brought to justice and should be held accountable."