I-TEAM: FBI investigating handling of rape case involving former asst. prosecutor, sources say

DAYTON — New documents are providing more details into the case against the former Montgomery County assistant prosecutor charged with rape, as the Federal Bureau of Investigation is reported to be investigating the handling of the case.

John Amos began working at the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office in 2000 and began handling violent crime cases starting in 2014.

He was the prosecutor on the Victor Santana case last year, more than a year after the prosecutor’s office was notified of a potential rape investigation involving him and months after that report was finalized and turned over to the prosecutor’s office.

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On Friday, Amos was indicted on two counts of rape, two counts of gross sexual imposition and one count of sexual battery.

A spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office told News Center 7 that to avoid any conflict of interest, the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office would not be handling any part of the investigation or potential prosecution of a case.

News Center 7 confirmed Wednesday that the Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office was originally asked, and agreed, to handle the case. The Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office said another county’s prosecutor had to be brought in because the original special prosecutor left the office and Hamilton County informed them they did not have proper staffing to move forward.

A special prosecutor from Lucas County was brought in and confirmed to News Center 7′s Mike Campbell that the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office did the law enforcement investigation into the complaint against Amos.

On Wednesday, News Center 7 went to the Sheriff’s Office to obtain the report, but only received two pages. We were told that the case was still active and only the initial case narrative could be released.

The report directs detectives to investigate a possible rape. It lists that the complaint was filed in June 2020 and that the alleged offense happened between April 19-26, seven years before the complaint was filed and nine years before charges were approved.

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Sources familiar with the investigation had indicated to News Center 7 that the incident may have begun at a business in the Austin Landing complex. The report lists two potential addresses related to the incident, one on Austin Boulevard and one on Washington Church Road.

This week, two different sources in the Dayton legal community have told News Center 7 that the FBI was asked to investigate the handling of the case by the Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office. A Dayton FBI office’s spokesperson told News Center 7 that, as a matter of Department of Justice policy, the FBI could not confirm or deny the existence of a potential investigation.

News Center 7 has also reached out to the lawyer who filed to represent Amos. That lawyer also filed a request to seal all court records in this case. We are awaiting a response.

Amos is scheduled to make his first court appearance July 28.

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