District Attorney Chad Salsman Pleads Guilty to Pressuring 5 Female Clients For Sex

A district attorney from Pennsylvania pleaded guilty on Friday to pressuring clients for sex when he was a defense attorney.

Bradford County District Attorney Chad Salsman also coerced the victim to keep quiet about it, according to an Associated Press report.

Chad Salsman, who earlier claimed that the case against him was a pack of "vicious lies, resigned from office three months after he claimed that he had not committed such crimes. He further claimed that he was the victim of a political tactic by the state's top prosecutor.

As a defense attorney, Chad Salsman had represented a number of women when it comes to child custody matters and some criminal cases.

Some of his clients struggled with addictions and had a history of being sexually abused, according to a WTAJ news report.

Salsman's office was allegedly the main venue for the several assaults, and that he had raped the women on his office desk.

The district attorney then directed them to his private bathroom to clean up using paper towels or cleaning wipes. Aside from the rape charges, he was also accused of trying to interfere with the investigation.

Chad Salsman's Case

Chad Salsman's pattern of predatory behavior was not known until he was arrested on Wednesday. He was then charged with over a dozen crimes, including sexual assault, intimidation of a witness or victim, and indecent assault.

"The details of these assaults are incredibly disturbing, and they are criminal," Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania's attorney general, said as reported by New York Times.

Shapiro noted that Chad Salsman abused his position of authority as a lawyer and a public official.

"The victims in this case were relying on him to be their advocate, to represent them at a time when they felt powerless, and instead they ended up being preyed upon," Shapiro said in the report.

The accusers told the court that the 44-year-old district attorney groped them, sought nude photos, and forced or pressured them into sexual acts.

According to witnesses, Chad Salsman had used music or noise-canceling device to blur out the noise coming from his office in Bradford County.

The Pennsylvania attorney general's office said Salsman pleaded guilty to reduced charges of witness intimidation, obstruction of justice, and promoting prostitution.

But he still faces a maximum sentence of 11 years in state prison with a $25,000 fine under the plea agreement. Salsman will be sentenced on Jul. 9, according to a Daily Mail report.

Shapiro said that he has a responsibility to stand up for the most vulnerable in "our Commonwealth." He noted that they had already arrested 90 public officials for charges related to public corruption, embezzlement, sexual assault, and other abuses of power.

Several of Salsman's staff testified of seeing his women clients leaving his office in distress. They added that their boss made an effort to hide the abuse during his time working for the private sector.

The jurors stated that Chad Salsman, appointed as district attorney in January 2020, used his knowledge of the victims' vulnerabilities to sexually assault them.

One incident detailed how Salsman stopped charging a client in a custody case after she started having sex with him. The woman involved told Salsman that she had been raped.

Salsman then directed her to enter his office through a back door and undress.

"He picked these victims because they didn't have another choice," Shapiro noted.

WATCH: Bradford County District Attorney Chad Salsman Pleads Guilty, Resigns Amid Sexual Assault Investigation - From WETM 18 News