A Prince George’s County grand jury indicted a suspended police officer Tuesday for misconduct in office for allegedly sharing confidential information with a commercial sex worker he was paying in exchange for sexual acts, according to a press release. The information he shared was about an ongoing police investigation, according to a department release.
The officer, Cpl. Ivan Mendez, was suspended in April 2019 after the police department was made aware of the 2018 incident, according to the police department press release. Mendez’s case was brought to the state attorney’s office after an investigation by the police department’s internal affairs, the department’s press release read.
“It is important for the community to know that once a fellow officer was made aware of the allegations against Mendez, the Internal Affairs Division was immediately notified,” Interim Police Chief Hector Velez said in the press release. “All allegations of criminal misconduct by our officers are taken seriously and thoroughly investigated. Officers who break the law have no place in this agency.”
Mendez joined the police department in 2009, as part of the Bureau of Investigations.
“My Office has a zero-tolerance policy for corruption by public officials who unlawfully violate the public trust. I take this very seriously because the people of Prince George’s County deserve to be represented by people who operate with the highest degree of professionalism and integrity,” county State’s Attorney Aisha Braveboy said in a statement.
