Former Sheriff’s Deputy arrested for receiving stolen property
PORTALES (KSEL)- A former Sheriff Deputy has been arrested for receiving stolen property and is now also believed to be involved with stolen evidence and property within the Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputy Christopher Franklin McCasland was reported to Roosevelt County Sheriff Malin Parker after a NMSP investigation where interviews had indicated his involvement with a 2019 report of missing cash and a 2020 report of a missing duty issued firearm.
McCasland was arrested in Quay County by New Mexico State Police on July 15, at approximately 11:15 am on the charge of receiving stolen property over $500 but not more than $2,500, a fourth-degree felony, and currently has no bond.
Per the press release, on January 11, 2019, the evidence custodian for the Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office reported approximately $8,000 missing from the evidence vault at the Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office. Sheriff Malin Parker reported the missing cash to the New Mexico State Police for investigation immediately after conducting an internal audit of the vault. A subsequent investigation by State Police had negative findings for a responsible party.
In May 2020 after a supervisor called for a routine weapons inspection of firearms at the Roosevelt County Sheriff’s Office, a Deputy with the Sheriff’s Office reported he could not locate his duty issued Glock model 22 .40 caliber weapon. After a thorough search, the weapon was not located and the New Mexico State Police were again notified to investigate as the Deputy reported the gun stolen.
After a lengthy and thorough investigation by State Police, Sheriff Parker was notified approximately a month and a half later with their findings.
A search warrant was conducted on the home of Deputy McCasland and numerous reported stolen items from previous crimes were discovered from a different county in New Mexico where McCasland had previously worked as a police officer. A small amount of marijuana was also located in McCasland’s unit. It was also disclosed to Sheriff Parker that the missing money previously reported was possibly linked to McCasland, according to witness interviews and purchases made.
Deputy McCasland was placed on immediate leave pending an internal investigation.
A letter located in McCasland’s county-issued vehicle showed he has an active arrest warrant in Yuma County, AZ for failure to pay traffic citations. The warrant was not discovered by Roosevelt County as it had not been entered into the National Crime Information Data Base and regular records checks did not indicate the warrant and McCasland never reported it.
As a result of the State Police investigation, McCasland was sent to an independent polygraph examiner with 43 years of experience in Amarillo, Texas. McCasland was questioned about the previous missing cash from the evidence vault and the examiner reported deception in regards to the questions.
McCasland was served with a notice of termination on July 13 and he resigned his position on July 14.
About Post Author
