Milwaukee sexual assault, registered sex offender charged

MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee County prosecutors have charged a registered sex offender with sexual assault, accusing him of holding the victim against his will and posting a video of the assault on social media.

In court:

Court records show 26-year-old Terrell Harris of Milwaukee is charged with first-degree sexual assault and false imprisonment. His bond was set at $25,000 when he made his initial court appearance on Friday.

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In 2019, Harris was sentenced to four years of probation after he pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of a child. As a result of that conviction, Wisconsin Department of Corrections records show he registered as a sex offender.

Charges filed

What we know:

According to a criminal complaint, the 18-year-old victim said Harris picked him up on the night of Feb. 2. The victim was under the impression they were going to make "music related content together" at Harris' home, but Harris pulled out a gun and threatened to kill the victim if he tried to leave "or go to school the next day."

Court filings said Harris directed the victim into a bathroom, where Harris pulled down the victim's pants and performed a sex act without the victim's consent. The victim said, after the assault, Harris continued to threaten him that he "could not leave" and that he'd "expose" him on social media.

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Prosecutors said the victim fell asleep at Harris' home overnight, and Harris "continued to hold him at the residence under threat of force." He escaped out a back door when Harris went to use the bathroom.

The victim said Harris had taken a video of the sexual assault and later released the video on social media, per the complaint. Police reviewed various photos, videos and messages between Harris and the victim – including screen recordings of the video of the sexual assault. Harris had posted the photos and videos on Instagram.

When police arrested Harris, court filings stated he said the words "sexual assault" multiple times when a person at the scene asked officers why he was being arrested.

Child sexual exploitation

Dig deeper:

In 2018, FOX6 News reported on the child sexual exploitation case filed against Harris. Prosecutors said Harris, who was 19 years old when he was charged, blackmailed a boy to perform sex acts on him in a police station restroom. 

A criminal complaint said police met with the victim, who said he was "being blackmailed" after he met Harris through a Facebook video chat in August 2017. He said Harris "offered him $500 if he would pose naked," but he never received the money.

The victim said he did not hear from Harris again until October 2017. According to court filings, Harris said he wanted to meet with the victim, and if the victim refused, Harris "would post the video from August." The victim said Harris told him to go to the Milwaukee Police District 7 station and "go into the bathroom." Harris came in moments later and said he wanted to perform a sex act "or he would post the video on the internet."

The complaint said the victim next heard from Harris in April 2018. Prosecutors said police looked at messages and calls Harris made to the victim, which showed Harris was trying to have the victim meet up with him. In one exchange, Harris told the victim "not to mess with him" because he "has a predisposition to violence."

Police later arrested and interviewed Harris. The complaint said Harris told police he knew the victim and that they'd had a sexual relationship for years. He admitted he had threatened to tell the victim's girlfriend about it.

Harris also admitted, according to court filings, that he met the victim at the police station restroom – but denied having a sexual encounter there. He said they had a sexual encounter at an abandoned home next door.