ONLY ON 3: Deputy Sloan fired after prostitution arrest; WPD confirms passenger was male; Sloan says “no sex”

BURGAW, NC (WWAY) — Pender County Sheriff Carson Smith released a statement Friday morning saying that after an internal investigation, Capt. Mark Sloan had been dismissed. Wilmington Police arrested Sloan earlier in the week for soliciting a prostitute and crimes against nature.

We reached out to Capt. Sloan, and although he told us he couldn’t talk about the details, he did say this situation has been very hard on him and his family.

Sloan says he has been best friends with Sheriff Smith for many years and has worked very closely with him on the job. He says he stands by the sheriff’s decision, because he wants what is best for the department after serving the county for 24 years. Sloan says after all the media coverage of the incident, he was not surprised by the decision.

When we spoke with him about the incident that landed him in jail Tuesday night, he did not give specifics. He did say however that he had “good intentions” and that it was not sex.

Sloan says he thinks another television station is misconstruing information and has an inside source that is not being truthful.

He says he is a religious man who is turning to his faith in this tough time and hopes the truth will come out in the end.

Sloan says there is a silver lining in all the drama that he’s had to deal with in the past week. He says he never knew how much he was appreciated in the community until it extended its support to him during this situation.

The Wilmington Police Department confirmed Friday that the passenger in Sloan’s car at the time of his arrest was male. Other details of the situation are still not available because the case is still under investigation. Sloan will be in court August 22.