An El Paso County Sheriff’s deputy was arrested Tuesday night in unincorporated El Paso County after a woman reported that a man had inappropriately touched her inside a local business. The deputy, identified by authorities as 34-year-old Christopher Ramirez, was taken into custody without incident and booked into the El Paso County Jail. He has been placed on administrative leave while the sheriff’s office investigates.
According to a news release reported by The Gazette, deputies were called to a business in the 6800 block of Fountain Mesa Road after a report that an adult male had entered and allegedly inappropriately touched an adult female. By the time deputies arrived, the suspect had already left. Investigators later identified Ramirez as the suspect. Ramirez has worked in the sheriff’s Detention Security Division since November 2024 and was released on a personal-recognizance bond following an advisement hearing.
What the charge means
Authorities say the conduct Ramirez is accused of falls under Colorado’s unlawful sexual conduct statutes. C.R.S. 18-3-405.7 defines unlawful sexual conduct by a peace officer and treats sexual contact or intrusion by an on-duty officer as an aggravated offense. Under that statute, non-penetrative sexual contact by a peace officer is charged as a felony class 4 offense, while intrusion or penetration is treated as a class 3 felony. Unlawful sexual contact in a broader sense is laid out in C.R.S. 18-3-404. Convictions under these laws carry prison exposure and sex-offender registration requirements that depend on the specific elements proven in court.
Local context
The sheriff’s office’s Special Victims Unit has already been busy with several high-profile sex-crime investigations this year. Earlier this spring, the unit arrested a former substitute teacher on multiple sexual-assault felony counts, the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release. “We take these allegations extremely seriously,” Sheriff Joseph Roybal said in that release. That earlier case, which relied on multiple interviews and search warrants, shows how lengthy and detailed sexual-offense investigations in the county can be.
What happens next
Ramirez has already appeared in court for an advisement hearing, and the case will now move through the local judicial process. Felony sex offenses in El Paso County are handled by Colorado’s 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, which will review the investigative file and decide whether to pursue any additional charges as detectives continue to turn over evidence.
