Three SAPD cops plead not guilty to stealing treats and smashing cameras at a pot shop

Three Santa Ana police officers pleaded not guilty on Monday to charges of petty theft in connection with a raid at Sky High Holistic, an unlicensed medical marijuana dispensary that was located on 17th Street, in Santa Ana.  that was recorded on video, according to the O.C. Register.

The charged police officers inluce Brandon Matthew Sontag, Nicole Lynn Quijas and Jorge Arroyo. They were each charged with one misdemeanor count of petty theft. Sontag was also charged with one misdemeanor count of vandalism under $400, according to the OCDA.

The three charged SAPD police officers are due back in court on July 25 for a pretrial hearing, according to the Orange County Superior Court.

If convicted, Arroyo and Quijas both face only a maximum of six months in jail and a $1,000 fine, while Sontag is looking at only one year and six months in jail and a $2,000 fine, according to the OCDA.

These cops got themselves in hot water on May 26, 2015, when they, and a large crew of other SAPD police officers, served a search warrant at Sky High Holistic. They were caught in action on the dispensary’s video cameras as they allegedly stole protein bars and cookies from the shop’s break room and shared the treats with their fellow cops, according to the OCDA. Quijas and Arroyo  were also accused of stealing extra cookies that they allegedly took with them as they left the pot shop, presumably with a major case of the munchies!

Sontag was also charged with trying to disable the visible surveillance video cameras by smashing their camera lenses.