Bailiff Pleads Not Guilty in Computer Thefts From Stores
A court bailiff accused of stealing laptop computers from office supply stores and selling them at computer fairs pleaded not guilty Monday to nine counts of theft and burglary.
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy John Michael Olivas, 29, faces five counts of commercial burglary and five counts of grand theft in Van Nuys Municipal Court. A preliminary hearing was set for April 23.
According to Deputy Dist. Atty. Bryant E. Bushling of the Special Investigations Division, Olivas stole computers Jan. 10 and Jan. 25. He allegedly stole from Office Depot and Staples stores in the San Fernando, Santa Clarita and Antelope valleys as well as from an Office Max store in Las Vegas, authorities said.
Olivas told buyers at a computer fair where the stolen goods were allegedly sold that he was a sheriff’s deputy, Bushling said.
As part of the Sheriff’s Department standard policy, the bailiff is on administrative leave until the case is settled. Olivas was released on $15,000 bail.
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