An embattled Orange County sheriff’s sergeant has been accused in protection paperwork with taking medication seized in a single case and reserving them as proof in one other, unrelated case.
Sgt. Matthew LeFlore, already dealing with allegations of illegally eavesdropping on attorney-client telephone calls, is now additional accused of shifting practically 18 grams of methamphetamine from one case to a different he was investigating. Additionally implicated within the alleged proof swap is Sgt. Arthur Tiscareno, in response to a courtroom movement filed Wednesday, Could 10, by Orange County Deputy Public Defender Tammy Nguyen.
“That is the nightmare of each member of our neighborhood. However the actuality is there are officers who will plant proof and write false studies,” Nguyen mentioned in a ready assertion. “There are officers who're completely satisfied they're above the regulation.”
Nguyen’s movement seeks all data associated to the case towards defendant Ace Kelley, together with data from the Sheriff’s Division’s proof monitoring system, referred to as Treatment.
Carrie Braun, spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Division, mentioned the company is reviewing the movement and can adjust to all courtroom orders.
The allegations by Nguyen forged a brand new gentle on the 2019 proof scandal during which sheriff’s deputies have been reserving proof late and generally in no way, an issue that division officers have mentioned was corrected.
Within the newest improvement, LeFlore wrote in a police report dated Oct. 20, 2020, that he collected and booked methamphetamine that he mentioned was seized from the Buena Park motel room of defendant Kelley, who's charged with possession on the market. LeFlore and Tiscareno had the room below surveillance and performed a probation search.
In his official report, LeFlore claimed to have discovered methamphetamine, heroin and fentanyl.
Nevertheless, in response to the courtroom movement, the methamphetamine was really seized that very same day from a neighboring room on the Coral Motel, unrelated to Kelley. Staying in that room was defendant Royal Baker. In Baker’s room, deputies from the division’s South Narcotics Element served a search warrant and allegedly discovered greater than 52 grams of heroin, practically 180 grams of methamphetamine and different medication, in response to the movement.
Baker ultimately pleaded responsible to possession on the market and obtained no jail time, data present.
Two weeks after the search, 17.8 grams of methamphetamine was taken from the Baker case and positioned into proof for the Kelley case, Nguyen mentioned.
Paperwork from the Orange County Crime Lab, obtained by Nguyen, appeared to verify the methamphetamine was switched from one case to the opposite about Nov. 4, 2020.
The sheriff’s inner proof monitoring system reveals no indicators of the swap, solely that the methamphetamine was booked on Oct. 19, 2020, into the Kelley case by Tiscareno, not LeFlore, mentioned the movement.
Nguyen, in her movement, alleged LeFlore lied when he mentioned he had collected 17.8 grams of methamphetamine from Kelley’s room and lied once more when he wrote in his report that he booked the medication into the system.
Nguyen additionally alleged LeFlore and Tiscareno conspired to cowl up the swap by failing to file a supplemental report back to doc the change and manipulated the proof monitoring system to make it seem the medication have been correctly booked into the Kelley case.
LeFlore has had earlier issues with dealing with proof. A sheriff’s audit that resulted in 2018 confirmed LeFlore didn't e book proof in a well timed method in 18 instances, though he wrote in a few of his studies that he had correctly saved the gadgets.
In a single case, LeFlore took custody of two full bins of bullets, 11 grams of methamphetamine and a pipe stuffed inside a pair of shoes. He by no means booked the property and, two weeks later, positioned the boots on a shelf in a sheriff’s substation, with an indication saying “Free.”
Courtroom paperwork beforehand present LeFlore on 5 events wrote in his official studies that he had positioned proof — sometimes paperwork and images — in a sheriff’s locker when, actually, he had not. The proof was booked greater than 20 days late on three events.
LeFlore was amongst a bunch of deputies referred by the division to the Orange County District Legal professional’s Workplace for potential prosecution for mishandling proof, however no expenses have been filed towards him.
He later was promoted to sergeant.
Tiscareno additionally had issues dealing with proof. A sheriff’s division audit confirmed that he claimed in 40 studies that he booked proof when he had not but performed so, the movement states.
In latest weeks, LeFlore additionally was accused in courtroom papers filed by Assistant Public Defender Scott Sanders of illegally listening to confidential telephone calls mistakenly recorded by the jail’s phone vendor between one inmate and his legal professional.
The legal professional at the least twice warned LeFlore — as soon as by identify — to not take heed to the conversations, however notes saved by LeFlore point out that he didn't cease listening, Sanders mentioned.
A sheriff’s official mentioned a month in the past the division is reviewing the eavesdropping movement to find out whether or not a full investigation is warranted into the allegations.