OAG: Mafnas violated investigative standards

The Office of the Attorney General has found on-leave Department of Public Safety commissioner Ramon C. Mafnas in violation of investigative standards and interpersonal standards of conduct but cleared him of any violation of law.

At a news briefing yesterday at the OAG’s Criminal Division, Attorney General Edward T. Buckingham pointed out that while not as serious as a violation of law, a violation of investigative standards is a matter of significance warranting serious consideration by Gov. Benigno R. Fitial.

The OAG also determined that Mafnas violated DPS operating protocols, which suggest the need for the commissioner to have additional management oversight and possible training.

The OAG found Mafnas in violation of an interpersonal standards of conduct, which suggests follow-up and possible training needs.

The OAG concluded as unfounded seven other allegations against the commissioner.

Buckingham, chief prosecutor Peter B. Prestley, and OAG chief investigator Vicente Babauta completed in a 25-day period the investigation report. The 74-page report that mostly contains exhibits, was then submitted to Gov. Fitial on Friday.

Buckingham said that, on March 26, 2012, Fitial requested OAG to conduct investigation concerning Mafnas, prompting him on that same day to ask chief prosecutor Prestley and OAG chief investigator Babauta to work with him.

The AG said he also invited the participation from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, but that he did not get a formal response.

“As we got to work, one of the things that we looked at was we were asked to investigate issues that were raised in the petition,” said Buckingham, referring to a petition signed by over 140 DPS personnel that seeks for the removal of Mafnas as commissioner.

The allegations in the petition include authoritarian leadership, confrontational approach, micro-management, and lack of faith and trust in the staff of DPS.

Buckingham said they went back to the petition’s two prime authors—Police captains Lawrence Camacho and Pete Guerrero.

Babauta was asked to separately interview Capts. Camacho and Guerrero to obtain specific examples of each of the four general allegations.

The OAG found Mafnas in violation of investigative standards pertaining to him not preparing a witness summary in connection with the investigation into the murder of Emerita Romero, and investigation at Suicide Cliff.

During a briefing in the Romero homicide case, Mafnas told Capt. Camacho that he had personally spoken to a witness and obtained a statement that conflicted with the statement DPS investigators obtained.

Camacho told the commissioner that he owed him (captain) a self-statement about his conversation with the witness.

Mafnas refused and said he did not owe Camacho a “god damn statement.”

Buckingham said they determined that it best fit as an interpersonal issue.

“The captain said I want you to get me a report. Well, you got the commissioner, deputy commissioner, police director, and then the captain. So the captain is somebody three levels down from the commissioner,” the AG said.

The next issue, Buckingham said, is whether or not Mafnas should have prepared a witness summary because according to Capt. Camacho, the commissioner interviewed a key homicide witness and did not provide a written summary.

In this case, Buckingham said, the commissioner’s failure to submit a self-statement was inappropriate and inconsistent with his duty to adhere to appropriate investigative standards.

The AG said the standard protocol is to provide a self-statement whenever an investigator conducts a witness interview.

Buckingham said chief prosecutor Prestley is going to need that statement when the OAG will go ahead and prosecute the case as a homicide.

“So you don’t want to have interviews conducted by law enforcement when there’s not a record of who said what,” Buckingham said.

With respect to the Suicide Cliff investigation, Mafnas shouted at a security guard and directed him to move his car to a different area.

When the security guard tried to explain, Mafnas became irritated and demanded to see his driver’s license and car registration. Mafnas then allegedly asked the guard whether he wanted the commissioner to arrest, handcuff, and shoot him.

The OAG said this activity involves performance at what would be a routine police officer function.

“While not unlawful to be performed by the commissioner, such activities should be undertaken in accordance with applicable standards of a police officer. This was not done in this case,” the OAG report said.

Buckingham said they concluded that what Mafnas did was inappropriate, but their conclusion is that there was no violation of law.

Prestley said no evidence that Mafnas had any gun in his possession at the time.

“It’s more like there was a suggestion that he (guard) could be shot if he didn’t cooperate, extended in a form of questions,” Prestley said.

“As far as disturbing the peace, I think we agreed that, look as a police officer or the commissioner or the head of police, when you interact with someone in the public, there is inherently some disturbing the peace. But it’s a legal disturbing the peace…when everybody has become disturbed when approached by a police officer,” the chief prosecutor said.

The OAG determined as unfounded the allegations that when human remains were found in the Kagman area, Mafnas told the officers directing traffic to go home, walked over the bones, and told the crime scene technician what to process, and told detectives not to do anything unless he directed them.

The OAG determined as unfounded the allegations that during the search of the missing Luhk sisters, Mafnas refused to share his findings during own interviews because he allegedly didn’t trust commanders with confidential information.

The OAG found the allegations as unfounded that Mafnas put the lives of DPS and Fire personnel when he was directing traffic trucks where to park during a fire scene in San Antonio and where to station themselves to contain the fire, and how to direct traffic.

The OAG found as unfounded the allegations that Mafnas denied Fr. Ryan Jimenez’s request for a closure of a road for the Station of the Cross procession and stated that the priest didn’t know the protocol and that he can conduct the procession on the sidewalk instead.

The OAG also found as unfounded the allegations that Mafnas took a trip to the Philippines with a potential vendor for DPS vehicles without delegating his authority in his absence.

The OAG said Mafnas filled out an application for leave form signed by Fitial, and that it was the governor’s role to delegate authority in the commissioners’ absence.

“There is no evidence of any wrongdoing during the commissioner’s trip to the Philippines with the vendor,” the OAG report said.