Deltona firefighter Terry Freeman II, who has been accused of sex crimes by 12 women, incurred another charge Tuesday, a Volusia County sheriff’s spokesman said.
Freeman is charged with sexual battery in connection to an attack on a 25-year-old DeLand woman he met through a dating website, spokesman Gary Davidson said. It is the sixth rape charge against Freeman. He is also charged in an attempted rape incident.
The incident occurred in October 2012 after Freeman and the woman, who had chatted through the site for a couple days, met at a restaurant near DeLand.
The two went back to the Deltona home where Freeman had been staying and began kissing, but the woman told Freeman to stop trying to take things further and he did, Davidson said.
After a second date a couple weeks later, the two again went back to Freeman’s place and were in his bedroom, but this time Davidson said Freeman didn’t listen to the woman when she said she didn’t want to take things further.
The woman told investigators that Freeman overpowered her and sexually assaulted her, but she didn’t report the attack when it happened because she thought no one would believe her, Davidson said. The woman, who thought she was the only victim, came forward after news of the other attacks.
Freeman — facing charges of sexual battery with a deadly weapon or force, three counts of sexual battery using force, sexual battery with no physical force, false imprisonment and attempted sexual battery — is held without bail at the Volusia County Branch Jail, records show.
A total of 12 victims have been identified, and investigators believe there could still be others, Davidson said.
Freeman, a Deltona firefighter for two years, is on administrative leave from the department and is collecting vacation pay, officials have said.
Anyone who believes they were a victim or has information about Freeman is asked to contact the Sheriff’s Office at 386-860-7030.