Two accused of making false sexual misconduct claims against deputy arrested on conspiracy charges

WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Ill. (KFVS) - A man and woman arrested on drug charges in Williamson County are facing new charges after detectives looked into sexual misconduct claims involving a sheriff’s deputy.

Nathan D. Behrens and Alexis D. Horton were arrested and charged with conspiracy to defraud a governmental entity, conspiracy to obstruct justice, filing a false police report and obstruction of justice.

According to the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office, Behrens and Horton falsely accused a deputy of sexual assault in an attempt to get drug charges dropped against them and to make some money through a civil lawsuit.

The sheriff’s office said Behrens and Horton were arrested after an investigation began on September 1 into a letter circulating on social media.

In a Facebook post, the sheriff’s office showed a photo of the suspected letter, which accused a deputy of inappropriately touching Horton when she was allegedly searched for methamphetamine during a traffic stop on August 5.

“The claim was very specific, very serious. It’s a situation that we take absolutely serious.” said Jeff Diederich, Williamson County Sheriff

Sheriff Diederich says that’s when he started an investigation to determine if the allegations were true.

He says he started by listening to recordings of jailhouse phone calls between Behrans and Horton.

“There are literally hundreds of hours of recordings in this case between these two people. And ultimately we come to the conclusion and discover that there is conspiracy to extort the circumstances to their benefit.” said Diederich

We have redacted a copy of the letter because of its explicit details and reported false accusations.

According to the sheriff’s office, Behrens and Horton were both arrested during that traffic stop after deputies found methamphetamine and a gun.

Both were booked into the Williamson County Jail.

Horton bonded out and Behrens remained in custody.

The Williamson County Sheriff’s Office said this is when Behrens and Horton came up with “an elaborate plan to levy false allegations” against a deputy to get their charges dropped and make some money.

“None of these allegations occurred, there is no question that they did not occur,” said Diederich.

Investigators said the plot was discovered after they reviewed jail telephone conversations between Behrens and Horton.

Video from the traffic stop on August 5 was also reviewed by investigators. The sheriff’s office said the video show the retrieval of contraband and “in no way demonstrates any inappropriate conduct.”

Investigators continued going into the case by interviewing both Horton and Behrens.

They said there was at least one confession stating the alleged inappropriate contact never happened and the purpose of the accusation was to get the charges dismissed and result in a financial “payday.”

Behrens and Horton were then arrested and booked back into the Williamson County Jail.

The Sheriff also says Horton admitted the allegations were false, and Diedrich believes Behrens to be the mastermind behind the extortion plot.

“I think she was strongly influenced by the male co-conspirator,” said Diederich.

Now, instead of getting their charges dismissed, both Behrens and Horton face even more felony charges.

“In an effort to try and escape out of being held responsible for criminal activity, it did just the opposite. They picked up 4 additional felony charges and that’s something they’ll have due process for and they’ll have to answer to a judge,” said Diederich.

Sheriff Jeff Diederich stated in a Facebook post that he will be seeking restitution from Behrens and Horton on behalf of taxpayers.

“The attempt by these convicted felons to falsely discredit this Deputy is unacceptable and resulted in considerable time and resources being expended at the taxpayers expense,” said Diederich.

Copyright 2023 KFVS. All rights reserved.