BLOUNT COUNTY, Ala. — A Jefferson County sheriff’s deputy has been placed on leave while the agency conducts an administrative investigation after he was charged in Blount County with first-degree rape, second-degree human trafficking, unlawful imprisonment and domestic violence harassment, authorities said.
Robert Nicholas Lisle, 47, of Warrior, was arrested Monday and booked into the Blount County Jail, according to court records and local television reports. The charges involve a woman identified in the criminal complaint as Lisle’s girlfriend.
Lisle, who worked as a deputy with the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office, is on leave while the agency investigates, Chief Deputy Henry Irby III told ABC 33/40. The Sheriff’s Office also confirmed Lisle’s employment status to WBRC.
A criminal complaint filed in Blount County District Court alleges that Lisle controlled the woman for the purpose of sexual servitude during July and August by threatening to report her to immigration officials and by using blackmail to pressure her into fulfilling sexual demands. The allegation resulted in the second-degree human trafficking charge.
The complaint also alleges Lisle engaged in sexual intercourse with the woman by forcible compulsion on or about July 15, forming the basis for the first-degree rape charge.
In a separate alleged incident Aug. 14, Lisle blocked the woman inside a bathroom to make her delete videos from her phone, according to the complaint. That allegation led to the second-degree unlawful imprisonment charge.
The domestic violence-harassment charge also stems from the Aug. 14 incident. Investigators alleged Lisle grabbed the woman by her ponytail and throat, attempted to unlock her phone through facial recognition while yelling at her, pushed her down and struck an area where she had recently undergone surgery, court records show.
Lisle’s bond and Aniah’s Law hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday in Blount County District Court. A first call is set for 9 a.m. Oct. 7, and the case is scheduled to go before a grand jury Oct. 26.