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Lynchburg police investigating alleged assault of an inmate by jail officer

Family calls for action while jail officials say they’re cooperating with investigation

LYNCHBURG, Va. – The family of a Central Virginia inmate is speaking out, claiming their loved one was assaulted by a Lynchburg jail officer.

“You see, I’m a momma! When you touch my son, that’s when I came involved!” said Sonya Asomaning.

Her son, 26-year-old Carroll Williams, was arrested Feb. 11 and assaulted at the city’s adult detention center, according to Asomaning.

10 News won’t go into graphic detail, but we’re told the Lynchburg Police Department is investigating the allegations.

Joshua Salmon, the administrator of the Blue Ridge Regional Jail Authority, said its cooperating.

“We want the truth, and we certainly don’t want anybody to think we’re holding anything back. We want to be very transparent,” said Salmon.

Lynchburg police investigate alleged assault of inmate by jail officer. (Copyright 2021 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

He identified the alleged officer as William Johnson, a jail employee of nearly two decades.

“[Johnson’s] a very kind individual. He’s a good, hard worker. There has been nothing like this in his past. He’s never been accused of anything like this,” Salmon said.

According to Salmon, Johnson has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.

Williams was moved to another facility.

Asomaning is calling on Lynchburg police and Commonwealth Attorney Bethany Harrison to act.

“I’m asking you to release the footage of what happened in that jail. You need to do your job! If you know these people here are doing this, I blame everybody! Even the mayor needs to get involved with what’s going on!” said Asomaning.

Police said no arrests have been made and the investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information about the alleged incident is asked to contact Detective Davis at 434-455-6166 or Crime Stoppers at 1-888-798-5900.


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About the Author
Tim Harfmann headshot

Tim Harfmann joined the 10 News team in September 2020 and works at the station's Lynchburg bureau.