Four of the seven law enforcement officers at the Costilla County Sheriff’s Office, as well as a former deputy, were charged in two incidents
Credit: 12th Judicial District Attorney’s Office
NEED TO KNOW
- Officers at the Costilla County Sheriff’s Office — including the sheriff and his son — as well as a former deputy were indicted by a grand jury in Colorado on charges of official misconduct, corpse abuse, assault and more
- Sheriff Danny Sanchez, former Deputy Keith Schultz, Undersheriff Cruz Soto, Sgt. Caleb Sanchez and Deputy Roland Riley were charged in two incidents
- Sheriff Sanchez and Schultz are accused of mishandling human remains, and the others are accused of “roughing up” a man who was experiencing a mental health crisis
Law enforcement officers in a rural Colorado county sheriff’s office and one former deputy were indicted by a grand jury this week on charges of official misconduct, corpse abuse, assault and more.
On Friday, March 27, the Twelfth Judicial District Attorney’s Office in Colorado announced that Costilla County Sheriff Danny Sanchez, former Deputy Keith Schultz, Undersheriff Cruz Soto, Sgt. Caleb Sanchez — who is the sheriff’s son — and Deputy Roland Riley have all been charged following two separate incidents.
The Associated Press reported that four of them are among only seven current law enforcement officers at the sheriff's office.
According to court documents reviewed by PEOPLE, the first of the two incidents began in October 2024, when a man discovered a human skull, teeth and other remains on a mountainous property and reported the location to the sheriff's office. Shultz was dispatched to the scene first and told the man the office would come back for the remains. When he and Sheriff Sanchez returned, however, the man said they only took the skull and left the other remains behind.
"It had no markings or labelling describing the items, the date or location of collection, the identity of the collector, or the chain of custody related to the evidence, and had no tape or seals to protect the integrity of the evidence," the court documents state. "Inside the bag was a skull matching the photos taken on Wild Horse Mesa, but the teeth with dental work were missing and no other remains were contained in the bag."
In a separate incident, Soto, Caleb and Riley were accused of using a taser against a man who was having a mental health crisis in February and tried to leave when they insisted he go to the hospital, according to the documents.
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The man told investigators that "no one told him he was under arrest or not free to leave" while at the sheriff's office building, and believed he was free to leave at any time."
"When he learned that the Sheriffs wanted him to go to the hospital 'voluntarily,' he no longer wanted to be at the sheriff's office," the documents state, noting that the man said he was not told that he was being arrested or criminally charged. "He reported that when he started to walk away, he was 'tased and roughed up' by the deputies."
The man then said he suffered broken ribs as a result of the incident. No charges were ever requested against the man.
Credit: Google Maps
District Attorney Anne Kelly said during a press conference on Friday that all five men turned themselves in and were expected to post bond.
"I cannot and will not ignore violations of the trust that a community should have in their police," she said. "No citizen of the San Luis Valley should have any doubts about the integrity of their police force."
In a press release sent to PEOPLE, the DA's office said that Sanchez and Schultz are charged with official misconduct and corpse abuse. Soto is charged with failing to intervene, failure to report use of force, third-degree assault and official misconduct, while Caleb and Riley were charged with second- and third-degree assault.
“The District Attorney’s Office is committed to investigating and prosecuting violations of Colorado law, regardless of who the offender is and what title they hold," the DA's office said. "Our community expects our law enforcement officers to perform their duties with integrity and adherence to the law."
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