An Orange County sheriff’s deputy who resigned amid an investigation into his conduct was charged this week with possessing child sexual abuse material, using a police database to pull information about his ex-girlfriend and her boyfriend, and violating a restraining order, prosecutors said Tuesday.
Fernando Melo Flores, 40, faces up to four years and two months in prison if convicted on all counts.
Flores, of Irvine, was assigned to John Wayne Airport when he allegedly went to his ex-girlfriend’s home at night and repeatedly called and texted her, prompting the woman to get a restraining order against him, the Orange County district attorney’s office said in a statement. The day after he was served with that order, Flores allegedly went back to his ex-girlfriend’s home.
During their investigation, police discovered that Flores allegedly had “numerous” images on his phone depicting child sexual abuse, as well as screenshots from a confidential law enforcement database with information about his ex, her boyfriend and the boyfriend’s ex. It’s illegal for officers to access that database for non-official reasons.
“The crimes carried out by a sworn deputy are a dereliction of his responsibility to his community and a disgrace to the badge and to the hardworking men and women of law enforcement who carry out their duties faithfully each and every day,” Orange County Dist. Atty. Todd Spitzer said in a statement.
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