A Fresno officer was accused of crimes. Here are 10 local cops arrested in recent memory
A veteran sergeant of the Fresno Police Department was charged with crimes Wednesday before surrendering in the latest case of a local officer being accused of illegal activity.
Sgt. Donald Dinell has remained on paid administrative leave since Jan. 11 following a Dec. 30 crash in his police cruiser that ended in the Fresno County District Attorney’s Office filing drug and robbery charges, according to investigators.
Dinell forcibly took methamphetamine from a woman while on the job and consumed in, leading to erratic driving and a crash, according to police.
He’s the first officer arrested this year, but there have been several members of Fresno law enforcement taken into custody in recent memory.
Deputy Chief Keith Foster
The highest-profile case of criminal activity by an officer came from Keith Foster, the former Fresno police deputy chief convicted in November 2017 of conspiring to distribute marijuana and heroin.
Foster was second in command of the Fresno Police Department behind only then-chief Jerry Dyer when Foster was arrested in March 2015.
Foster was transferred out of a medium-security federal prison in June 2020, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, and into a residential reentry center (halfway house).
Federal officer Adrian Enriquez
Detectives arrested Adrian Enriquez for possession and distribution of child pornography on April 6, according to the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.
He worked as a federal police at the Veterans Affairs hospital in central Fresno, investigators said.
He has pleaded not guilty and his trial is ongoing, according to court records.
Officer Jeffrey Logue
After 17 years with Fresno police, officer Jeffrey Logue was arrested Dec. 9, 2020, for possessing child pornography, according to investigators.
Upon learning of the arrest, then-Police Chief Andy Hall personally fired Logue before he was booked into jail, according to a news release from the day of the arrest.
He entered a not guilty plea last year.
Correctional officer Tina Gonzalez
Tina Gonzalez was arrested May 1, 2020, on suspicion of having sex with an inmate at Fresno County Jail, where she worked as a correctional officer, according to investigators.
She pleaded no contest to one count of the illegal sexual activity with the inmate, as well as possession of drugs or alcohol in the jail and possession of a cellphone with intent to deliver it to an inmate.
She was sentenced June 9 to two years probation and seven months in the county jail.
Officer Darren Nelson
While off duty, Fresno officer Darren Nelson was involved in a DUI crash on July 2, 2018, with a blood alcohol content that was twice the legal limit of .08, according to investigators.
He pleaded no contest in November of that year and was required to enter a drug program and remain on probation, which are typical requirements for DUI cases, records show.
Correctional officer Javier Gomez
Fresno County Sheriff detectives on Jan. 6 arrested Javier Gomez of Kingsburg as he was leaving his job as a correctional officer at Corcoran State Prison, according to investigators.
He’s accused of child molestation of a victim who is now an adult, but was under 16 when the crime was alleged to have happened in 2017. Gomez was 36 at the time.
Officer J.D. Torrence
Accused of sexual battery while in uniform, Sanger officer J.D. Torrence was arrested July 7, according to the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.
The five-year veteran stopped a man and woman to speak with them for potentially being drunk in public, investigators said. He allegedly touched the woman against her will in a sexual manner during the interview.
Investigators said there may have been previous victims.
Officer Brian Heck
Fresno officer Brian Heck was arrested in 2018 for domestic violence on his girlfriend in July of that year, according to Clovis police.
Court records show the girlfriend said she believed the officer “was going to kill me” as he kicked and punched her.
He pleaded no contest to corporal injury and charges related to trying to dissuade a witness, and was sentenced to three years probation, according to court records.
Officer Jose Ruelas
Former Fresno police officer Jesse Joe Ruelas was ultimately found not guilty July 6, 2016, of abusing his teenage daughter, but he was arrested after not following court orders, according to investigators.
In October of the previous year, Ruelas was arrested after California Department of Justice agents found several firearms in his home — a violation of a criminal protective order that was issued in his child abuse case. The guns were supposed to be surrendered to law enforcement.
This story was originally published March 3, 2022 at 8:37 AM.
