Virginia State Police Conducting Investigation into Spotsylvania County Deputy
There is also an active internal investigation into the deputy, the Sheriff's Office confirmed this week.
By Adele Uphaus
MANAGING EDITOR AND CORRESPONDENT
Email Adele
The Virginia State Police confirmed this week that a Spotsylvania County deputy is the subject of an “active and open investigation.”
The deputy, Emmanuel Otero, is also the subject of an internal investigation being conducted by the Sheriff’s Office.
Robin Lawson, public relations director for the Virginia State Police, wrote in a December 2 email to the Advance that the criminal investigation into Otero is “an active and open investigation.” She said she was unable to provide more information about the investigation “at this time.”
On November 26, Otero appeared in Spotsylvania General District Court for a hearing on a protective order sought against him by another county employee.
During the hearing, Otero testified under oath that he had been told that the internal investigation into him would be concluded after the protective order hearing, and that it was unfounded.
But in an email to the Advance sent on December 1, Lt. Col. Delbert Myrick with the Spotsylvania Sheriff’s Office said that, “the Internal Investigation [into Otero] remains open” and that per established policy, it will “remain open until the criminal matter is concluded.”
At the November 26 hearing, John Spencer, a substitute General District Court judge, denied the county employee’s request for a protective order. He stated that since the oral testimony provided by the county employee and Otero was conflicting, he had to look at the documentary evidence—which consisted mainly of text messages—to determine who to believe.
“I have nothing here where he threatens her,” Spencer said. “For [that] reason, I will deny the protective order.”
Myrick said that Otero was placed on administrative leave while a preliminary protective order was in place. After the November 26 dismissal of the request for a final protective order, he was “placed on modified duty, which excludes him from performing law enforcement responsibilities and interactions with the public,” Myrick said.
“He will remain on modified duty until the criminal investigation is complete and the [internal investigation] is finalized,” Myrick continued. “All of this is our standard policy and procedure.”
Local Obituaries
To view local obituaries or to send a note to family and loved ones, please visit the link that follows.
Support Award-winning, Locally Focused Journalism
The FXBG Advance cuts through the talking points to deliver both incisive and informative news about the issues, people, and organizations that daily affect your life. And we do it in a multi-partisan format that has no equal in this region. Over the past year, our reporting was:
First to break the story of Stafford Board of Supervisors dismissing a citizen library board member for “misconduct,” without informing the citizen or explaining what the person allegedly did wrong.
First to explain falling water levels in the Rappahannock Canal.
First to detail controversial traffic numbers submitted by Stafford staff on the Buc-ee’s project
Our media group also offers the most-extensive election coverage in the region and regular columnists like:
And our newsroom is led by the most-experienced and most-awarded journalists in the region — Adele Uphaus (Managing Editor and multiple VPA award-winner) and Martin Davis (Editor-in-Chief, 2022 Opinion Writer of the Year in Virginia and more than 25 years reporting from around the country and the world).
For just $8 a month, you can help support top-flight journalism that puts people over policies.
Your contributions 100% support our journalists.
Help us as we continue to grow!
This article is published under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND. It can be distributed for noncommercial purposes and must include the following: “Published with permission by FXBG Advance.”
Someone like this has multiple victims before they get caught. I hope the other victims are just as brave as this one and they come forward. He must be stopped. And NEVER should have a badge again!