BUTLER — The mayor of Butler has been charged with two misdemeanor accounts of voyeurism after an investigation by the Richland County Sheriff’s Office.
Wesley R. Dingus, 48, is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday at 10 a.m. in Mansfield Municipal Court.
The alleged offenses involve sniffing the previously worn underwear of a minor relative in his care. Both instances were recorded by a small video camera, according to a Richland County Sheriff’s Office report.
According to Ohio Revised Code 2907.08, “No person, for the purpose of sexually arousing or gratifying the person’s self, shall commit trespass or otherwise surreptitiously invade the privacy of another, to spy or eavesdrop upon another.”
The incidents allegedly took place on Jan. 13, according to the report, while Dingus was out on bond awaiting trial for another criminal case in Richland County Common Pleas Court.
The RCSO began its current investigation after being contacted by Richland County Children Services.
According to the sheriff’s report, Dingus told deputies he was willing to speak with investigators on Jan. 19.
On Jan. 16, defense attorney James Mayer, who is also representing Dingus in the other case, called the RCSO and said he had advised his client not to make any statements about the allegations.
The RCSO forwarded its investigation to the Mansfield Law Director’s Office on Jan. 26.
On Feb. 12, Assistant Law Director Ron Sharp said two summonses would be issued to Dingus. Those were served to the defendant on Feb. 13.
Dingus indicted on 4 counts in 2025
In 2025, Dingus was indicted on four counts by a Richland County grand jury, including aggravated assault (a fourth-degree felony), vehicular assault (a fourth-degree felony), falsification (a first-degree misdemeanor) and dereliction of duty (a second-degree misdemeanor).
The charges stem from a July 11, 2025, incident, during which Dingus allegedly struck a man twice with his car. The man was wanted by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction for a parole violation and was reportedly fleeing police during a traffic stop when Dingus was charged with hitting him with his vehicle.
Dingus was arrested on a warrant on Aug. 17 and pleaded not guilty to all charges the following day. He was released from the Richland County Jail on a $25,000 bond. That case remains pending in Common Pleas Court.