Colorado: Democratic governor sanctions two Mesa sheriff's deputies for sharing immigrant data with ICE
Alexander Zwinck and Erik Olson are accused of violating a new state law, passed by Democratic Gov. Jared Polis, that prohibits local government employees from sharing personally identifiable information with federal immigration officials.
ICE and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents.
Two Mesa County, Colo., agents were disciplined for sharing personal information with federal immigration agents. They are accused of violating a new state law, signed by Democratic Gov. Jared Polis about two weeks ago, that prohibits local government employees from sharing personally identifiable information with federal immigration officials.
Alexander Zwinck and Erik Olson used a Signal chat to facilitate arrests after traffic stops. The information was released by the county's own sheriff's office.
The situation follows the June arrest of a Brazilian college student who had an expired visa. Zwinck, who was part of an anti-drug task force, provided ICE with the student's personal information, such as vehicle registration and location, facilitating the arrest.
In that regard, an internal investigation revealed that Olson also shared data with federal authorities.
"Based on our findings, the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office should not have had any role in the chain of events leading to Miss Caroline Dias-Goncalves’s detention, and I regret that this occurred. I apologize to Miss Dias-Goncalves" the sheriff said in a statement.
Among the sanctions are:
- Agent Alexander Zwinck has been placed on three weeks, or 120 hours, of administrative leave without pay and will be removed from his current assignment with the Western Colorado Task Force and reassigned to patrol.
- Agent Erik Olson has been placed on two weeks, or 80 hours, of administrative leave without pay and will be removed from his current assignment on the Western Colorado Task Force and reassigned to patrol.
Sanctions were also applied to three supervisors. One was suspended without pay for two days, another received a written reprimand and the third was subject to a counseling/guidance session.
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