Denver Police Officer Accused Of Grooming 17-Year-Old: 'Perfect Girl For Me'

A Denver police officer is facing a 10-day suspension for "inappropriate" conduct toward a 17-year-old girl. The officer has denied any intention to establish a relationship with the girl.

Daniel Osman, who has served in the Denver Police Department for 17 years, will serve a suspension in two five-day chunks from April 18 to April 22 and from May 2 to May 6 after an investigation found he engaged in “Conduct Prejudicial” to the department, NewsNation affiliate KDVR reported.

According to a letter from the state's Department of Public Safety, which conducted the internal investigation, Osman's behavior started when he met the unnamed young girl last year while responding to a theft report at the Famous Footwear store, where she worked as a sales associate.

Police received a complaint from the store manager, who said her employee "felt awkward" when Osman visited the 17-year-old's Facebook profile and looked at her photo. The police officer allegedly told the teen, "This is a perfect girl for me."

Osman's interactions with the 17-year-old did not stop here. The officer allegedly brought the girl to a Chipotle for lunch on July 1 after an invitation to go to dinner was turned down, according to the disciplinary letter outlining the events.

The teen told investigators Osman disclosed during the meal that he was going through a divorce and revealed to her that he "[preferred] Latinas with brown eyes, brown hair," which the girl said might have been directed at her.

The store manager told investigators Osman allegedly told the girl they could just "get to know each other," and could "develop something later." The manager also recalled Osman allegedly showing the 17-year-old a photo of his daughter, who was aged between 19 and 21, and telling the girl that his daughter was "not that older" than her.

Osman told investigators he believed the girl was actually 20, but the 17-year-old girl said she was clearly joking and that the cop had been aware of her real age. At one point, the store manager corrected him when he said the girl was 20.

The letter reported that Osman "continued to engage in text messages, continued to bring coffee or energy drinks to the store" and took her to lunch even after learning of the teen's real age.

Osman denied meeting the girl again after their lunch. Phone records indicate text messages between the officer and the teen stopped on July 3.

Officials criticized Osman's behavior in the disciplinary letter, saying, "The over-sharing of his personal life with a young woman at the age of one of his daughters is at best inappropriate and at worst, evidence of an attempt to pursue more than a work-based friendship."

The police veteran, for his part, denied any wrongdoing. But investigators said, "[Osman] conceded the optics of a male cop in his 50's interacting with a 17-year-old female 'looks' bad." Osman also told investigators that a number of his fellow officers began calling him "rapist" and "pedophile."

No charges have been filed against Osman as there is reportedly no evidence that suggests there was any form of physical contact between the 17-year-old girl and the police officer during their interactions.