A former Tucson police sergeant accused of drinking and gambling on the job lost his certification to work as a peace officer in Arizona Wednesday.
Robert Lund worked for the Tucson Police Department for more than 20 years before retiring in March.
The incident occurred Jan. 29 when someone called 911 to report a possibly impaired driver near South Harrison Road and East 22nd Street.
Officers found a 1999 Ford Taurus — an unmarked city police car — in a parking lot on the corner, police said at the time.
Lund was asked to give breath samples because officers believed he was intoxicated. The tests yielded blood-alcohol levels of 0.202 and 0.183, far exceeding the DUI level of 0.08. He was arrested on a variety of DUI charges, including extreme DUI.
An internal-affairs investigation determined Lund drank beer at the beginning of his shift and later on in the day while he was gambling on dog races.
Lund also admitted to drinking a bottle of tequila while on duty in his unmarked police car, the documents say.
Octavio Garcia — a former Santa Cruz County Sheriff's deputy — also lost his certification due to a conviction for attempting to smuggle an illegal immigrant into the country.
He worked for the Sheriff's Office from January 2004 until October 2007 when he was fired.
The incident occurred Sept. 25, 2007, when a Mexican man who was riding in Garcia's truck applied for entry into the country at the Nogales port of entry.
Customs and Border Protections officers suspected that the man might have been trying to enter the country illegally, so he was referred for more questioning, according to court documents.
The man admitted that he had no documents to come into the U.S. and that a friend made arrangements for him to be smuggled, court documents show.
He was picked up at a casino near the border by Garcia, who told him to tell officers at the port of entry that he and Garcia were friends and had known each other for two months.
Garcia was indicted on charges of attempted transportation of an illegal immigrant for profit and bringing in an illegal for profit.
He took a plea deal and was sentenced to three years' probation.
The board on Wednesday also voted to initiate proceedings for a former Tucson police officer accused of lying on his application when he didn't disclose information about his connection to a homicide that occurred more than a decade ago.
Frank A. Soto was fired from the Tucson Police Department in October 2007 after working for the agency for three years.
The accusation surfaced in 2005 when a Tucson police sergeant working an off-duty job recognized Soto and recalled that in 1995 he had been implicated in a gang-related drive-by shooting, according to the documents.
One gang member was killed and another was wounded. Soto was not arrested, but one of his passengers was, documents show.
When Soto applied at the Tucson Police Department, he did not answer truthfully about his involvement in serious crimes.
The following questions were asked on the TPD pre-employment questionnaire:
● Did you ever accompany any person who committed any serious crime?
● Have you ever done anything, that if found out, would embarrass this department?
● Has a police officer, detective or any other law enforcement ever questioned you about any incident (whether as a witness, victim, suspect, or arrestee), even an incident for which you were not charged or arrested?
● Have you ever committed or been present during the commission of any criminal offense other than those disclosed in response to prior questions, whether or not detected or reported?
To all of the questions, Soto responded "No."
The sergeant who recognized Soto from the homicide reported his concerns to a supervisor that Soto was a Tucson police officer given his past association with the Brown Mexican Pride gang.
The report made by the sergeant was not acted upon until approximately two years later in 2007.
Upon being confronted, Soto admitted that he should have been truthful to questions regarding his presence in past criminal activity and gang associations, the documents state. However, because he was not accused or charged with a crime, Soto thought it was not relevant.
He was fired for being untruthful, the documents said. He appealed the termination, but it was upheld.He has since re-enlisted in the Army, documents show.
Also under scrutiny is former Pima County Attorney investigator Cecilia I. Sene, who worked for the office for only three months before she resigned, according to Arizona Peace Officer and Standards Training Board documents.
Her resignation stemmed from an Aug. 27, 2006 incident, when Sene was seen drinking a bottle of beer in a vehicle in the parking lot of a local casino, documents state.
When she was approached, Sene became belligerent toward security and responding police officers.
She was arrested on charges of impersonating a public servant and consuming spirituous liquor in a public place after she refused to show identification and identify herself as a police officer, documents say.
The case was turned over to the Pima County Attorney's Office but was sent to the Tucson Municipal Court due to conflict of interest, documents say.
She entered a diversion program and was ordered to attend counseling. Upon completion, the charges were dismissed.
As a result of her actions, Sene was informed that she would be failing her initial probationary period at the Pima County Attorney's Office.
Since then, Sene was arrested again in July on a disorderly conduct charge for a fight with two women at Coach's Bar in Sahuarita.
Sene reportedly was bumping into people on the dance floor and used her purse to strike two women. She also reportedly choked one of them.
The women declined to press charges.
Sene entered into another diversion program in August and if completed, would have the charges dismissed.
