UPDATE: King City former police chief and officer sentenced in embezzlement case
UPDATE 10/7/15: King City’s former police chief and a former officer were sentenced by a Monterey County Judge Wednesday morning for their involvement in an embezzled police car in 2010.
Both former Police Chief Nick Baldiviez and former Officer Mario Mottu were sentenced to 30 days in jail and three years probation.
Mottu was convicted of embezzling a police car meant for the police explorer program and turning it into a show car for his personal use. Prosecutors also said Mottu used funds from the police explorer program to turn the car into a show car.
Baldiviez was convicted of signing that police car over to Mottu, allowing him to take it as personal property. During court proceedings, Baldiviez was asked to review his signature on DMV paperwork, signing the car over to Mottu. Initially claimed he never signed them and a perjury charge was added. That charge was later dropped because Baldiviez said he didn’t remember signing the paperwork.
UPDATE 3/27/2015: King City interim Police Chief Tony Solicito confirmed former Officer Mario Mottu Sr. turned in his resignation to the department.
This comes after he pleaded guilty Wednesday to embezzlement charges.
Mottu was on paid administrative leave during the court proceedings.
PREVIOUS STORY: Wednesday 54-year-old Mario Mottu entered guilty pleas to two counts of embezzlement, one felony and one misdemeanor stemming from allegations of misappropriation when he was a King City police officer.
The Monterey County District Attorney’s Office said that Mottu may ask for the the felony charge to be reduced in exchange for testifying against his co-defendant, former King City Police Chief Nick Baldiviez.
The District Attorney’s Office uncovered the transfer of a King City police car which had been modified as a show car, to the personal property of Mario Mottu.
Investigators said they learned City Council authorized the car be handed over to the police explorer program but never authorized it to be converted to the personal property of Mario Mottu. Prosecutors say after the transfer of the car to his personal property Mottu continued to use police explorer funds to modify the vehicle.
News Channel 5 has reached out to the attorneys representing Nick Baldiviez who is accused of signing over the car to Mottu, but has yet to hear back. Baldiviez is also being charged with one count of perjury alleging he lied lying on the stand during his testimony in a preliminary hearing.
Mottu’s guilty plea comes a day after the former owner of Miller’s Towing, Brian Miller, pleaded guilty to grand theft and bribing an officer. This was related to a towing scheme that targeted disadvantaged people and immigrants living in King City without legal permission to be in the U.S.
There has still been no word on whether his brother, former acting Police Chief Bruce Miller, or Sgt Bobby Carillo will take pleas or continue to trial.
