A former Schuylkill County woman faces a charge of filing a false report after police say she admitted to fabricating a Christmas Day rape accusation against her boyfriend because she caught him cheating.
Brooke Pratt-Wenzinger, 33, formerly of Ashland and now living in Ranshaw, Northumberland County, initially told police that on Dec. 25, her boyfriend pinned her to a bed, covered her mouth when she tried to yell for help, and sexually assaulted her at a Walnut St. apartment in Ashland. Following the report, police say she was transported to Lehigh Valley Hospital is Pottsville for a rape kit, police say.
However, Wenzinger later recanted the allegations, telling police the encounter was consensual and she lied to “get back at him,” police say.
The reversal began on Jan. 12, when Wenzinger called police stating the investigation “was not going anywhere” and she wanted to “drop the case,” according to police. On Jan. 15, she called again to confess she lied about the assault and wanted to stop the investigation, police say. Wenzinger reportedly said that she and her boyfriend had since rekindled their relationship.
Police interviewed Wenzinger at her home on Jan. 17, where she completed and signed a written statement. She allegedly told police she lied because “I caught him cheating” and said, “I feel bad.”
Police say they asked Wenzinger twice if anyone was forcing her to recant her initial report. She confirmed she was not being coerced, telling police, “He had nothing to do with it.” Police say Wenzinger acknowledged she was aware of the consequences of making a false report to law enforcement.
Wenzinger has an April 1 preliminary hearing before Magisterial District Judge Edward Taratentelli.
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