The Orange County Sheriff’s Department (OCSD) is investigating one of its own after receiving a tip an employee was at the U.S. Capitol during the Jan. 6 riot.
Sgt. Dennis Breckner told The Epoch Times the department launched the probe after someone turned over photos of an OCSD staffer at the rally.
“A member of the public informed OCSD about pictures they saw on social media,” Breckner told The Epoch Times via email.
“No pressure has been put on the OCSD. We are looking into the matter because as an employer, we want to know if any wrongdoing took place.”
Breckner confirmed that the employee was not a deputy sheriff, and was off duty at the time of the rally.
The rally consisted of thousands of people protesting outside the Capitol as, inside, congress counted Electoral College votes from the November general election. The event turned violent when some protestors stormed the building, ultimately leading to five deaths.
The OCSD has not publicly identified the employee in question, but The Epoch Times obtained photos of an OCSD special officer attending the Capitol with friends. An image posted to her own Twitter account shows a crowd marching toward the Capitol.
Social media screenshots also show the woman posting about recent trips to Arizona and Washington D.C. that took place last November, where she attended other Stop the Steal rallies, as well as a curfew breaker rally in Huntington Beach.
Records from Transparent California also confirm she is a special officer for the department.
It was not clear whether the employee entered the Capitol or participated in any wrongdoing.
Breckner said they are investigating, “because it was reported that the employee was in the DC area during the time of the unrest and we are looking into it to determine if the OCSD employee was involved in anything illegal.”
