By: Associated Press//June 21, 2013//
MILWAUKEE (AP) — A former Milwaukee police officer convicted of performing illegal strip searches and body-cavity searches on dozens of suspects has been sentenced to more than two years in prison.
Thirty-four-year-old Michael Vagnini pleaded no contest in April to four felonies and four misdemeanors. A Milwaukee Journal Sentinel report says he was sentenced Friday to 26 months.
Prosecutors say Vagnini conducted searches inside men’s underwear, sometimes inserting his fingers into their rectums. State law prohibits police officers from conducting body-cavity searches.
A message left with his defense attorney, Michael Steinle, was not immediately returned Friday.
Vagnini was suspended with pay and resigned Wednesday.
Three other police officers were charged with Vagnini. They were also suspended with pay pending trials later this year.
Information from: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, http://www.jsonline.com