An ex-police officer facing charges of child sexual assault in Pennsylvania was shot and killed during a shootout with law enforcement this week.
Lower Merion Township Police were on patrol when they saw a car on Old Lancaster Road in Bala Cynwyd belonging to Francis Connell Collier, 38, who was wanted by the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office on charges of rape of a child, according to Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin R. Steele.
The gunfire exchange occurred at 3:48 a.m. on Feb. 25 near Collier’s home in Bala Cynwyd.
The charges of sexual assault stem from accusations lodged against Collier 20 years ago by two girls.
Collier had been part of the Morton Police Department in suburban Philadelphia but resigned from the force on Dec. 19, 2025, after he was placed on unpaid administrative leave due to an investigation.
The case is now dismissed due to Collier’s death.
In a probable cause affidavit written by police, Collier allegedly failed a polygraph test and afterwards denied the accusations, saying “that he ‘never intentionally touched the girls inappropriately.'”
When Collier’s two accusers viewed photos of Collier online with children, they became concerned that he was part of a child abuse task force.
The Morton Police Department said on Facebook that it is deeply troubled by the serious allegations against a former officer.
“The conduct described in the charges is profoundly disturbing and wholly inconsistent with the standards and values expected of those who serve our community,” authorities said.
The Morton Police Department further stated that there had been no allegations of criminal conduct against Collier while he was working as a Morton police officer.
“The Morton Police Department was contacted in December 2025 by the Delaware County District Attorney’s Office regarding an investigation into then officer Francis Collier,” officials said. “The investigation was related to criminal allegations of an incident(s) that took place many years ago when Francis Collier may have been a teenager.”