A recently rehired L.A. County Sheriff's deputy is speaking out after the release of a video that appears to show him trying to break into his ex-girlfriend's apartment in 2014.
The deputy, Caren Carl Mandoyan, tells Fox 11 it was not a case of domestic violence and he's not prepared to sit back while others try to depict him as a monster.
The deputy was fired in 2016 but was recently reinstated by newly elected Sheriff Alex Villanueva.
Meanwhile, Mandoyan appears to have been a member of one of the secret societies that have long concerned department watchdogs.
Villanueva managed to avoid journos waiting for him outside an event this evening to talk to him about Mandoyan. LASD statement: "There is pending litigation and this matter will be decided in court. The Sheriff is focused on running the Department." @KNX1070 https://t.co/Ld2MIizPU3
— Claudia Peschiutta (@ReporterClaudia) March 29, 2019The deputy, who lost his job over allegations of domestic abuse and stalking but recently got it back, has a Reapers tattoo.
The Los Angeles Times reports his accuser told investigators the deputy warned her his membership in the group meant he had friends "who could ruin careers in the department."
"When he was at Lennox station, like many of the Lennox deputies, he was part of the group but it's not what it sounds like," attorney Greg Smith, who represents Mandoyan, said. "It was a group of deputies that had that logo ...at the time it was for station camaraderie and we are talking a long time ago."
While the county wages a legal battle with the sheriff over the reinstatement, the deputy continues to work...without pay.
Smith insists the allegations against his client "are all false" and says they're getting ready to sue the county.
