Two former U.S. Marshals are facing prison time in separate cases – one involving cyberstalking, the second using his job to obtain phone numbers for personal use.
In the first case, former U.S. Marshal Ian R. Diaz, 45, of Glendora, Calif., was sentenced to 10 years and a month in prison in a case in which Diaz and his ex-wife posed as a person with whom Diaz was formerly in a relationship.
Using that guise, they sent themselves harassing and threatening electronic communications that contained apparent threats to harm the ex-wife, listed in court documents as an unindicted co-conspirator. They then solicited and lured men found through Craigslist “personal” advertisements to engage in so-called “rape fantasies” in an attempt to stage a purported sexual assault on the ex-wife, made to look like they had been orchestrated by the Jane Doe; and staged one or more hoax sexual assaults and attempted sexual assaults on the ex-wife.
Diaz and the ex-wife then reported this conduct to local law enforcement, falsely claiming that the Jane Doe posed a genuine and serious threat to Diaz and the ex-wife.
The scheme caused local law enforcement to arrest, charge, and detain the Jane Doe in jail for nearly three months for conduct for which Diaz and the ex-wife framed her.
In the second case, former deputy U.S. Marshal Adrian Pena, 49, of Del Rio, Texas, used a law enforcement service to locate individuals with whom Pena had personal relationships and their spouses.
Pena, according to court documents, obtained the cell phone data by uploading blank and random documents to a system operated by Securus Technologies exclusively for authorized law enforcement purposes. Pena falsely certified that those documents were official and that they granted Pena permission to obtain the individuals’ data.
Pena also lied to law enforcement during the investigation. When Pena was asked, “Other than yourself, have you ever pinged anybody using the system? You know, family members, friends, ex-girlfriend?,” Pena falsely responded, “No.”
After the interview, Pena attempted to cover up his illegal actions by asking one of the individuals for a notarized letter. Pena then drafted a statement in the individual’s name and caused the individual to sign it.
The statement falsely stated that the individual granted Pena unlimited access to the individual’s social media and cell phone data, including call history, text messages, and cell phone location data.
Pena pleaded guilty to unlawfully obtaining confidential phone records. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
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Chris Graham
