Officer pleads guilty to theft
On Monday September 9, 2019, following a plea recommendation from Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Glass, the Court found Department of Public Safety Police Officer Koji Maurice Taisacan guilty and ordered him to serve seven days in the Department of Corrections and pay a fine of $500. The officer was ordered to serve the remainder of his one-year sentence on probation and pay restitution, complete 100 hours of community service and have no contact with the business where the theft took place. Taisacan was taken into custody on Monday after pleading guilty to the crime of theft.
Before trial, Taisacan had resisted any plea agreement that required jail time. However, after AAG Glass had begun presenting the evidence of the theft, Taisacan agreed to change his plea and accept jail time. The evidence showed that on June 12, 2018, Officer Taisacan, after finishing his shift, had gone to the Shell gas station in Susupe and shoplifted several candy bars and a Starbucks coffee. The theft was caught on surveillance cameras.
“In sentencing this officer, the Court made it clear that, regardless of the value of the items stolen, the officer seriously damaged his credibility with the public by his crime,” said Chief Prosecutor John Bradley. “The Attorney General takes these crimes very seriously. Public officials must hold themselves to a high level of accountability,” concluded Chief Bradley. The officer’s attorney, Joey P. San Nicolas, expressed to the court the officer’s extreme embarrassment over the crime, noting that the officer also was a Marine.
The Court noted at sentencing, DPS will now have to consider what action to take regarding the officer’s continued employment.