Former police officer found guilty on several sex charges in retrial

CENTERVILLE — A former Waynesville police officer convicted of rape has been found guilty on three counts in a retail.

Peyton Kocevar, 24, of Centerville was found guilty of two counts of rape and one count of gross sexual imposition from an investigation that began in 2020, according to Centerville Police. The verdict was reached last week, according to court records.

News Center 7 previously reported that Kocevar was found guilty of one count of rape and not guilty of four other counts of rape and one count of gross sexual imposition in December.

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The jury was unable to reach a verdict on two counts of rape and one count of gross sexual imposition during the December trial, which lead to a retrial that began last month.

Kocevar was indicted in June 2020 by a Montgomery County grand jury on seven counts of rape and two counts of gross sexual imposition, officials said.

According to court records, the alleged crimes occurred while Kocevar was a student at Alter High school between 2012 and 2016. Prosecutors allege he raped multiple victims during this time.

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Defense lawyers argued that Kocevar did not rape the women.

“This is not a case of rape. This is not a case of gross sexual imposition, this is not a case of a monster attacking six different people. It’s a case of teens going to an apartment, a party on-going, people go into bedrooms, various things happen,” Jon Paul Rion, the attorney for Kocevar, said in December.

Kocevar is in custody in the Montgomery County Jail and is scheduled to be sentenced on May 17, according to police.

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