SouthernWorldwide.com – Local officials in Arizona are actively seeking to remove Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos. This push comes as Sheriff Nanos is currently leading the investigation into the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie.
At least two Pima County supervisors have indicated their intention to file a motion to have the sheriff’s office vacated. This action is contingent on Sheriff Nanos not stepping down voluntarily by Tuesday, which will mark 100 days since Nancy Guthrie vanished from her Tucson, Arizona, residence.
The supervisors’ allegations center on claims that Sheriff Nanos perjured himself under oath during a deposition for a separate, unrelated lawsuit. Specifically, they accuse him of denying that he faced disciplinary actions, including suspensions, during his tenure as a police officer in El Paso, Texas, prior to joining the Pima County Sheriff’s Department in the 1980s.
Dr. Matt Heinz, a member of the Pima County Board of Supervisors, stated that a disciplinary board had unanimously decided at the time that Sheriff Nanos could no longer serve as a police officer. Heinz explained that the board found him to be “bad at this and he’s not upholding our standards … he’s got to go.”
CBS News has reportedly obtained records from the El Paso Police Department. These documents allegedly show that Sheriff Nanos received multiple suspensions. The reasons cited for these suspensions included offenses such as “unnecessary violence” and habitual tardiness.
“He has definitely lost the confidence of the community. He’s embarrassed himself, and it’s time for him to go,” Heinz emphasized, expressing his strong opinion on the matter.
Read more: Trump Announces Prisoner Swap Amid 3-Day Russia-Ukraine Truce
In response to these allegations, an attorney representing Sheriff Nanos issued a letter. The attorney stated that Sheriff Nanos did not comprehend the question regarding discipline with a different agency, which was not governed by the Arizona Peace Officer’s Bill of Rights. The letter further claimed that upon reviewing the deposition transcript shortly thereafter, Sheriff Nanos identified the misunderstanding and promptly informed his legal counsel.
The current movement to remove Sheriff Nanos from his position occurs shortly after he faced criticism regarding his department’s handling of the Nancy Guthrie case. This criticism notably came from FBI Director Kash Patel, who asserted that the Pima County Sheriff’s Department was too slow in involving the FBI in the investigation.
“For four days, we were kept out of the investigation,” Patel stated during a podcast interview with Sean Hannity on Tuesday, expressing his concerns.
In a public statement released on social media, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department shared Sheriff Nanos’s response. Nanos asserted that a member of an FBI task force was present at the scene on the very night Guthrie was first reported missing. He also highlighted that the Pima County Sheriff’s Department held a joint news conference with the FBI just two days after the initial report.
Supervisor Heinz, however, maintains that the current efforts to remove Sheriff Nanos are entirely unrelated to the Guthrie investigation. He insisted that the focus is solely on the sheriff’s past professional conduct and record.
“In no way has the Guthrie investigation ever factored into this. It really hasn’t,” Heinz reiterated, distancing the ousting attempt from the high-profile missing person case.
