EXCLUSIVE: Key witness 'out to get' San Mateo Co. sheriff? Credibility questioned by public official
According to the public official, "employee #3" told him she was going to take Corpus down.
SAN MATEO, Calif. (KGO) -- San Mateo County voters have given the Board of Supervisors the power to remove Sheriff Christina Corpus from office. She's been under fire since a scathing audit report released in November, but now, her legal team is calling into question the credibility of a key witness cited dozens of times in that report. I-Team reporter Dan Noyes has exclusive information about the witness called "civilian employee #3."
Both sides are preparing for the legal battles ahead. One public official has already agreed to testify under oath at the proper time, about threats he allegedly heard from "civilian employee #3" -- that she wanted to take down the sheriff because she didn't get a promotion.
It's been quite a turnaround for "civilian employee #3." She worked at the San Mateo County Sheriff's Bureau in Millbrae when Christina Corpus was captain and chief there. And she took on a public role when Corpus ran for sheriff -- volunteering on the campaign, attending the kickoff rally, and introducing Corpus to voters online.
It's a much different story now. Employee #3 campaigned on her social media for Measure A to give the Board of Supervisors the power to fire the sheriff, saying Corpus is unfit for duty.
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But, a public official in Millbrae tells the I-Team, he will testify under oath at the proper time that, on 12 to 15 different occasions, "employee #3" told him she was going to get Corpus. I obtained an interview the public official gave to the sheriff's legal team in which he identifies employee #3 and says, "I have information that was conveyed to me directly by 'employee #3' that she was out to get Sheriff Corpus after she was elected and that she would do anything to bring her down."
That public official said employee #3 expected a promotion once Corpus became sheriff, after the work she did on the campaign, but it never happened and employee #3 was furious. Again, a quote from the public official's interview: "I remember she was 'I'm going to get that (bleep) a couple of different times and saying that she's going to go after her and this is the way that (employee #3) talks, 'Oh, (bleep's) going to come down on her,' that type of language and communication. And that's to me directly."
"She's out for vengeance for me," Sheriff Corpus said. "She's out for vengeance."
Shortly after the release of the audit report in November, Sheriff Corpus told the I-Team a lawyer pressured her office for a promotion for employee #3.
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Sheriff Christina Corpus: "A prominent San Mateo County female attorney went to one of my captains and said that if I didn't give this person a promotion, then I was going to regret it."
Dan Noyes: "When did that conversation happen?"
Sheriff Corpus: "Oh, probably about maybe a year ago or so. Maybe a year ago."
Noyes: "So, shortly after you took office?"
Sheriff Corpus: "Yeah."
Noyes: "Or within the first year of you taking office?"
Sheriff Corpus: "Yes."
That attorney tells the I-Team she did inquire about a promotion for employee #3 -- but not as her lawyer, just as a family friend, and that she never made a threat like "the sheriff will regret it."
But that Millbrae public official said, in their meetings, employee #3 said "would communicate her absolute displeasure with Christina and the threat of going after her and quote-unquote, 'getting the sheriff.'"
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"Civilian employee #3 was among "40 current and past sworn and civilian employees" interviewed by retired Judge LaDoris Cordell, who was paid $200,000 by San Mateo County to investigate complaints against the sheriff. Employee #3's accusations are cited dozens of times in the 400-page document, much more than any of the other witnesses. For example, employee #3 claimed Corpus called former sheriff Carlos Bolanos a racial slur twice on one occasion at the Millbrae bureau.
Noyes: "Employee three says that you were looking over her shoulder at zoom with Bolanos on the screen and that you dropped the N-word twice."
Sheriff Corpus: "I don't use that word. I don't use that word."
According to the report, employee #3 gave Judge Cordell a text message she claims came from the sheriff, using a derogatory expression for a gay councilmember.
Noyes: "Did you write those words?"
Sheriff Corpus: "No, I had to look what look that up because I was unclear as to what that was."
Noyes: "That's not your text?"
Sheriff Corpus: "No, it's not my text. I did not send that."
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But, the majority of employee #3's accusations cited in the report focus on an explosive allegation, that Sheriff Corpus and her chief of staff, Victor Aenlle, have a relationship that is far beyond professional and that as a result, he wielded considerable power in the office.
Noyes: "And that you've turned over control of the department to him."
Sheriff Corpus: "Well, really?"
Noyes: "What do you say to that?"
Sheriff Corpus: "Garbage. I say it's false. I am not having an affair with him. I've known Victor for 17 years- 17 years. And we our colleagues, I consider him a trusted confidant, a friend. Is it because I'm a woman and I can't have a man next to me that I trust without having a sexual relationship with him?"
Noyes: "During all that time, did you and her ever become romantic?"
They both denied it, in exclusive interviews.
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Victor Aenlle: "No."
Noyes: "There's never been physical contact or a dating relationship."
Aenlle: "No."
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That public official told the sheriff's legal team, "My professional opinion of the report is that it isn't worth the paper it's written on. I don't think that that report has any merit at all. I think it has a lot of fatal flaws and it's not a legitimate, true independent investigation."
Charles Stone is the lawyer for employee #3; he told us neither he nor his client would comment for this report. The I-team also called Judge Cordell and sent her a specific list of questions, and she did not answer. One other thing we found interesting -- Judge Cordell has a personal website where she is posting on-going coverage of the scandal, but you won't find any of our stories there that have pointed out mistakes in her audit report. You can see all our coverage in the timeline here.
Take a look at more stories by the ABC7 News I-Team.
