The HPOU honored Senior Police Officer Frank Gomez of the Traffic Enforcement Division’s Highway Interdiction Unit as the Patrol Officer of the Month in the Union’s August general membership meeting.
On April 14 Officer Gomez mad a traffic stop that resulted in the rescue of a 10-year-old boy from a situation where he had been sexually assaulted and family members were protecting the suspect, Sgt. Reid Cashdollar said in his nomination of Gomez.
“Officer Gomez was drawn to the vehicle because of the change in driving behavior when the suspect saw him in a marked police vehicle.
“Officer Gomez developed probable cause and made a traffic stop. The officer interviewed the driver, a male with a long criminal history, who did not know the first or last name of the 10-year-old boy in the car. The male stated that he dropped the boy’s mother off at court, but they were miles away from the courthouse for reasons he could not explain.”
The officer determined that the little boy did not know the name of the man who was driving him around. The officer found a syringe with trace heroin in the car. He contacted Child Protective Services and found that there was an ongoing sexual assault investigation involved the boy. The officer then told the young man that he was taking him to a CPS facility.
“The victim denied sexual contact with the suspect, but stated he had been sexually assaulted by his uncle and his aunt and his mother knew about it but would not call the police,” Cashdollar said.
“He was able to provide details of the place and time he assault occurred. The suspect was arrested and placed on hold for further investigation and filing charges.
“Officer Gomez completed the arrest by writing an excellent detailed report, which will assist investigators and the district attorney in building a case to prosecute the suspect in this incident.”
Cashdollar said Gomez’ work resulted in the removal of an innocent youngster from an abusive situation.
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