{"id":28662,"date":"2026-08-05T14:56:27","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T09:56:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=28662"},"modified":"2026-08-05T14:56:27","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T09:56:27","slug":"top-commander-of-elite-l-a-county-sheriff-unit-leaves-job-amid-probe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=28662","title":{"rendered":"Top commander of elite L.A. County sheriff unit leaves job amid probe"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/6cac0f2\/2147483647\/strip\/false\/crop\/4619x3849+0+0\/resize\/1500x1250!\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fbb%2Ffb%2F85e3fcda4dbcaeb6a909925706e3%2F1557690-me-torch-run-11-mjc.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<div data-element=\"story-body\" data-subscriber-content=\"\">\n<p>A commander of an elite Los Angeles County sheriff\u2019s unit ignored evidence that cleared a subordinate of wrongdoing and went after him anyway \u2014 and then provided \u201cfalse or misleading\u201d statements about it under oath, an internal investigation found.<\/p>\n<p>Top brass recommended that Cmdr. Oscar Barragan, who oversaw the agency\u2019s special enforcement bureau, be discharged for violating the department\u2019s policies on dishonesty and obstructing an investigation, according to an internal July 14 memo reviewed by The Times. <\/p>\n<p>A sheriff\u2019s spokesperson said Barragan \u201cseparated\u201d from the department two weeks before the memo was issued. She declined to elaborate further. <\/p>\n<p>Barragan did not respond to a request for comment. In an internal interview with sheriff\u2019s investigators, he blamed his bad memory and denied intentionally providing false or misleading testimony.<\/p>\n<p>The special enforcement bureau, which handles high-risk tactical operations like barricaded suspects and hostage situations, has been at the center of several recent controversies. Last year, a <a class=\"link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/california\/story\/2025-07-18\/explosion-la-sheriff-training-facility\">grenade exploded<\/a> at a training facility, killing three bomb squad detectives. The incident prompted multiple investigations \u2014 one into the deputies\u2019 deaths, another into the disappearance of a second grenade and a third into the alleged distribution of graphic crime scene photos of the detectives\u2019 bodies. A state investigation, meanwhile, <a class=\"link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/california\/story\/2026-04-01\/grenade-deaths-la-deputies-safety-violations\">found a series of safety violations<\/a>, including failure to provide effective training. <\/p>\n<p>In another case involving the bureau, a black Labrador named Spike who was trained to detect fire accelerants in arson investigations <a class=\"link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/california\/story\/2022-10-24\/vet-contradicts-sheriff-report-dog-death\">overheated after a sergeant left him in a car<\/a> for more than four hours.<\/p>\n<p>The events that led to Barragan\u2019s discharge recommendation began in 2023, when a lieutenant in the bureau bought a car with a cashier\u2019s check he obtained from Wells Fargo, according to the internal sheriff\u2019s department memo.<\/p>\n<p>A few weeks later, according to the memo, the lieutenant, Joseph Garrido, noticed the money was still in his account. The seller, though, said he had cashed the check. <\/p>\n<p>So the lieutenant went to the bank, the memo says, where tellers realized they had mistakenly withdrawn the $33,500 from the account of the Sheriff\u2019s Relief Assn., an organization that supports sheriff\u2019s employees during times of crisis. The bank fixed the error and gave him a deposit slip that read: \u201cCorrection, teller debited wrong account.\u201d It also issued a letter saying the same thing.<\/p>\n<p>The memo says Garrido reported the incident to the Sheriff\u2019s Relief Assn. and to his supervisor at the Sheriff\u2019s Department, then-Capt. Bryan Aguilera.<\/p>\n<p>Aguilera had \u201cno concerns\u201d about the lieutenant\u2019s actions \u201cbecause the evidence and documents presented to him showed that the incident was the bank\u2019s mistake and that he did nothing wrong,\u201d the memo said.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, according to the memo, Barragan wrote a supervisory inquiry in which he \u201crecommended further investigation into the matter.\u201d In another form requesting a criminal investigation, Barragan wrote that he suspected the lieutenant of embezzlement. None of the documents mentioned the letter from Wells Fargo clearing Garrido.<\/p>\n<p>In April of last year, Barragan was deposed as part of a <a class=\"link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/california\/story\/2022-10-17\/sheriff-retaliation-lawsuit\">retaliation lawsuit filed by Garrido<\/a> unrelated to the Wells Fargo case.<\/p>\n<p>Garrido had previously been targeted with another criminal case in which the investigating sergeant said in an email to a top executive that he suspected Garrido<a class=\"link\" href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/california\/story\/2024-12-18\/did-sheriffs-officials-conspire-to-set-up-whistleblowing-lieutenant\"> had been set up<\/a> to face unfounded allegations he had used a department-issued vehicle to tow his boat to Arizona for a vacation in 2022. Garrido alleged in his lawsuit that the inquiry was manufactured as payback for a campaign donation he made to a political rival of former sheriff Alex Villanueva.<\/p>\n<p>County lawyers have agreed to settle the case, pending approval by the L.A. County Board of Supervisors. <\/p>\n<p>When questioned about the Wells Fargo case, the department\u2019s internal memo says, Barragan denied that he authored a supervisory inquiry and request for a criminal investigation.<\/p>\n<p>Later, Barragan signed paperwork to change his answers to those deposition questions, saying he \u201cfound documents that refreshed my recollection\u201d and that he did, in fact, author the inquiry and request for a criminal investigation. In an interview with internal sheriff\u2019s investigators, Barragan was \u201cunable to explain\u201d why the exculpatory documents were omitted, the memo said.<\/p>\n<p>Barragan told investigators that \u201calthough Wells Fargo characterized the incident as a mistake, he believed additional review was appropriate given the amount of money involved,\u201d the memo says. He blamed the false statements in his deposition testimony on the \u201cpassage of time, limited preparation, and his inability to recall the documents during questioning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Vince Miller, an attorney representing Garrido, commended the Sheriff\u2019s Department for doing \u201cthe right thing\u201d in this case. <\/p>\n<p>Barragan\u2019s name has also been mentioned in a lawsuit filed over the deadly training center grenade blast last year.<\/p>\n<p>The explosion at the Biscailuz Center Training Academy killed Dets. Victor Lemus, Joshua Kelley-Eklund and William Osborn. <\/p>\n<p>A lawsuit filed by Lemus\u2019 daughter last month claims that Barragan and other top commanders were warned of \u201ctraining deficiencies\u201d within the arson explosives detail before the incident. The lawsuit alleges that one veteran deputy told a captain a few months before the explosion that \u201cthe bomb squad unit was so undertrained that someone would be killed.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Nicole Nishida, a sheriff\u2019s spokesperson, said by email that the agency has taken steps to improve safety, including \u201cstandardizing policies and procedures to ensure greater organizational consistency, introducing new equipment, and refining supervisory response protocols based on the nature of each incident.\u201d \u201cThe Department continues to evaluate our training, equipment, and operational practices to identify additional opportunities to enhance the safety of our personnel while maintaining our ability to effectively protect and serve our communities,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n<p>A 2023 captains survey conducted by the Assn. for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs, the labor union that represents rank-and-file deputies, said Barragan, who was captain of the bureau at the time, \u201cwill sacrifice vital training opportunities in order to farm out personnel for nonessential displays or appearances.\u201d His assessment was \u201csatisfactory.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>In 2024, the same union survey concluded that Barragan\u2019s performance was \u201cvery good,\u201d but said that his choices for lieutenants and sergeants \u201clack operational experience.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Barragan was promoted to commander that year. <\/p>\n<p>Prosecutors in June declined to file charges against another top official, Cmdr. Thomas Giandomenico, saying a forensic examination of his phone revealed eight photos taken on the day of the incident. One of them showed the scene, with the deceased deputies covered on the ground, though they were not the focal point, according to a L.A. County district attorney\u2019s office declination memo.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe evidence does not establish beyond a reasonable doubt that the photograph was taken for a purpose unrelated to official duties,\u201d the district attorney\u2019s  declination memo says. \u201cNo evidence was discovered showing the photograph was disseminated outside official channels or used for any personal or non-official purpose.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Giandomenico did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In an interview with investigators, according to the district attorney\u2019s memo, Giandomenico said he believed the allegation was unfounded and suggested it may have been motivated by internal politics. <\/p>\n<p>He remains on leave and an internal administrative investigation is ongoing. <\/p>\n<p>The investigation into the grenade explosion by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health resulted in more than $350,000 in fines to the Sheriff\u2019s Department, including for failing to establish procedures for identifying workplace hazards associated with handling explosives. The Sheriff\u2019s Department has said it had appealed the citations. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A commander of an elite Los Angeles County sheriff\u2019s unit ignored evidence that cleared a subordinate of wrongdoing and went after him anyway \u2014 and then provided \u201cfalse or misleading\u201d statements about it under oath, an internal investigation found. Top brass recommended that Cmdr. Oscar Barragan, who oversaw the agency\u2019s special enforcement bureau, be discharged&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":28663,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/ca-times.brightspotcdn.com\/dims4\/default\/a78c1d2\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/4619x2425+0+712\/resize\/1200x630!\/quality\/75\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalifornia-times-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fbb%2Ffb%2F85e3fcda4dbcaeb6a909925706e3%2F1557690-me-torch-run-11-mjc.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28662","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-hub"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28662","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=28662"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28662\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/28663"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=28662"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=28662"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=28662"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}