2 Aliens Testify to Mishandling by City Officers : Crime: One migrant testifies during preliminary hearing in Municipal Court that he was beaten, robbed of $25 and pushed into pool of water.

Two illegal aliens testified Wednesday that they were kidnaped and robbed by two San Diego police officers in separate incidents last August.

The men--both of whom admitted on the stand that they had violated drug laws--said the officers, Lloyd J. Hoff and Richard P. Schaaf, picked them up on street corners downtown, stole cash from their wallets, then dumped them in an isolated area near some railroad tracks.

One of the undocumented workers, Rolando Carrera Reyes, added that Hoff struck him several times with his police flashlight in the testicles, tossed his shoes in a dirty puddle of water and pushed him into the water.

Hoff and Schaaf are charged with felony counts of kidnaping and robbery and, if convicted, could be sentenced to life in prison. Although police officials said the two officers were in the process of being fired once the charges were filed last month, defense attorney Everett Bobbitt said Wednesday that Hoff and Schaaf are still officers and continue to receive paychecks.

They are charged with kidnaping three illegal aliens, but Craig Rooten, the deputy district attorney who is prosecuting the case, said one of the alleged victims, identified as Ramiro Rodriguez, has not been located.

The other two men--Carrera Reyes and Arturo Romero Garcia--appeared in court Wednesday at the opening of a preliminary hearing before Municipal Judge Nicholas Kasimatis to determine whether there is enough evidence to justify them standing trial on the charges.

Both men, testifying through a Spanish-language interpreter, said they have used many aliases over the years and had come to this country illegally. A special videotape was made to preserve their testimony should they flee this country before the case goes to trial.

Upon his arrival at the courthouse to testify, Carrera Reyes was arrested on half a dozen outstanding warrants, the most serious of which named him for possession of marijuana for sale. After stepping down from the stand, he was led off to jail.

In his testimony, he said Officers Hoff and Schaaf stopped him after he left a downtown disco and drove him to a secluded and dark area near a set of railroad tracks. He said they took $25 from his wallet and tore up his identification and other papers. He said that they tossed the wallet onto the ground and that Hoff struck him with the flashlight.

“He struck me again in the testicles, then he turned me around and hit me in the hand with his flashlight,” Carrera Reyes said. “He told me to take my shoes off. I took them off. He looked at them, and then he threw them in the water, some dirty water that flows out of there.

“They just threw me into the water then and left me there.”

Carrera Reyes also testified about an incident a year earlier in which, he said, the same two officers stopped him on the street, took his money and drove him and another illegal alien, identified only as Enrique, to National City.

“They just took my money,” Carrera Reyes said. “They took me to National City and dropped me off at a bridge. They just let me out.”

Under cross-examination, Carrera Reyes said he had just gotten out of jail when he was stopped in August and he lied to police detectives about whether he had a job at the time he was allegedly kidnaped and robbed. He admitted using marijuana, but said he does not use hard drugs or drink beer.

“I’ve never been caught for selling, but I was arrested once for having 51 marijuana cigarettes,” he said.

The second alleged victim, Garcia, testified in a jail uniform. Rooten said Garcia is serving time for auto burglary.

Garcia told the court he once was charged with killing a transient, after police found him with a lot of blood on his arm. But Garcia said the blood came from using a needle to inject heroin and said the murder charges against him were later dismissed.

On the witness stand, he often slouched and glared at the attorneys. When asked to spell his name, he indicated that he did not know how to.

Garcia said he and Rodriguez, the alleged victim who has not been located, were picked up near the trolley tracks on C Street and taken to the same isolated area. He said that they were not struck by Hoff or Schaaf, but that the officers did take about $35 from his wallet, along with other items from his pockets.

“They even took my comb,” he said.

The hearing continues today.