WILKES-BARRE (AP) — Officials say a northeastern Pennsylvania police officer has retired following his arrest last month on charges that he sexually assaulted four women while on duty and threatened the women to keep quiet.

The mayor of Wilkes-Barre tells The (Wilkes-Barre) Times Leader that 53-year-old Robert Collins submitted a letter in early February indicating that he has retired as a city police officer after a dozen years on the force.

Collins was suspended with pay after he was arrested by state police in January and charged with rape and witness intimidation. He’s accused of assaults while on duty from August 2013 to December 2014.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled March 5. Collins said he planned to fight the charges, telling a judge he passed a lie detector test.

Information from: Times Leader, http://www.timesleader.com