A West Sacramento police officer was arrested Monday on suspicion of sexual assault and kidnapping, offenses allegedly committed while on duty.
The arrest of 37-year-old Sergio Alvarez followed a five-month investigation that began Sept. 24, when a woman told another patrol officer that she had been sexually assaulted by a uniformed officer, Police Chief Dan Drummond said during a news conference.
He said Alvarez was immediately placed on administrative leave, and Sacramento Police Department detectives were asked to aid in the investigation.
Investigators subsequently identified five more victims, bringing the total to six. The Yolo County district attorney over the weekend convened a grand jury, which handed down an indictment.
Drummond said Alvarez was served with termination paperwork on Monday and booked into Yolo County jail. His bail is set at $26.3 million.
Alvarez, who is married and a father, grew up in West Sacramento and graduated from River City High School.
He joined the West Sacramento Police Department in 2007 and worked as a patrol officer. Drummond said it was Alvarez's first law enforcement job.
"I'm personally just appalled and sick that someone who was put in a position of trust would violate that trust in such a despicable an egregious manner," Drummond said.
The alleged assaults occurred late at night or early in the morning, when Alvarez was on patrol. They covered the period from October 2011 into September 2012.
Victims ranged from 20 to 47 years old. All frequented the West Capitol Avenue area. Assaults allegedly occurred inside and outside of Alvarez's patrol car.
In some cases, Drummond said, victims were taken to another location.
The chief said patrol officers typically work alone. He said the department is studying how procedures might be changed to ensure more accountability.
Anyone with information on the case is asked to call West Sacramento police at (916) 617-4775
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McClatchy-Tribune News Service
