A San Diego County sheriff's deputy is behind bars after investigators say he repeatedly had sex with a woman incarcerated at the Las Colinas women's jail in Santee. Ricky Garcia, 37, was arrested Tuesday and booked into the Vista Detention Facility on suspicion of engaging in sexual activity with an incarcerated person.
According to 10News, a criminal complaint charges Garcia with five felony counts of engaging in sexual activity with an inmate, with the alleged conduct said to have occurred in June and July 2026, per the complaint. A co-worker reported concerns that the alleged offenses were taking place, prompting the sheriff's office's Sexual Assault Unit to investigate. Separately, Patch reported that an employee had raised concerns about possible inappropriate conduct between a deputy and an incarcerated person at the Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility.
Garcia joined the sheriff's department in March 2018 and was most recently assigned to the San Diego Central Jail. Once the allegations surfaced, he was placed on administrative assignment and removed from responsibility for overseeing incarcerated persons, per the sheriff's statement, while investigators built their case.
Sheriff Calls Conduct a Breach of Trust
Sheriff Kelly Martinez described the purported crimes as abhorrent and said they represented a violation of public trust. She said people in the sheriff's office's custody are among the most vulnerable and must have their rights protected, adding that the department would not tolerate criminal behavior and would hold employees accountable.
After the investigation concluded, the case was referred to the San Diego County District Attorney's Office for prosecution, and an arrest warrant was issued, the same Patch report notes. Garcia was placed on administrative leave pending resolution of the case, and the account adds that he was placed on unpaid leave following his arrest.
California state law prohibits jail staff members from engaging in sexual activity with inmates, regardless of consent, meaning any sexual contact between a deputy and a person in custody can constitute a crime even absent force or coercion. The sheriff's office said the case appears to be an isolated incident, per the Patch report.
Las Colinas Serves as County's Main Intake for Women
The Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility, located in Santee, serves as the primary point of intake for incarcerated females in San Diego County, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Office. Broader federal data on sexual victimization in jails, drawn from the Bureau of Justice Statistics, shows that in 2023-24, 2.2% of adult inmates nationally reported sexual victimization by another inmate and 2.3% reported sexual victimization by facility staff, though that data does not establish any trend specific to this case or facility.
Garcia's case now moves to the District Attorney's Office for prosecution. No further details on the charges or scheduling have been made public.
