Luis A. Sandoval

A Smith County Sheriff’s Office deputy was fired and arrested Wednesday for accusations of misusing official information after a months-long multi-agency investigation.

Deputy Luis Alberto Sandoval was charged and booked into the Smith County Jail after an investigation from the Texas Department of Public Safety Criminal Investigation Division and the Smith County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division.

This investigation began as an East Texas Anti-Gang Task Force investigation with DPS investigators starting the investigation.

Sandoval was terminated from the sheriff’s office before his arrest, and 114th District Judge Austin Reeve Jackson issued a warrant for his arrest. His bond was set at $250,000, according to the sheriff’s office.

Sandoval was processed into the Smith County Jail late Wednesday afternoon, and he was subsequently taken to Gregg County Jail, where he bonded out on Thursday, online records show.

Sandoval worked at the Smith County Sheriff’s Office from Nov. 14, 2017, until his separation this Wednesday. He was a detention officer at first, and he then transferred to patrol on Sept. 13, 2018.

Smith County Sheriff Larry R. Smith said law enforcement officers will make bad decisions, but they will be held to a high standard at the Smith County Sheriff’s Office.

“Within just two days of my taking office on Jan. 1, 2013, we were faced with having to arrest one of our own,” Smith said. “Unfortunately, since that time, several others have taken the wrong path and have made conscious decisions to tarnish the badge. This is in contravention to each of the dedicated and hardworking men and women of the Smith County Sheriff’s Office. There is absolutely no place in this Sheriff’s Office for dishonesty and I assure you once it’s identified and rears its ugly head it will not be tolerated.”

The sheriff’s office said the information regarding this case will remain limited until at least two ongoing investigations are completed.

The Tyler Morning Telegraph has requested court documents related to Sandoval’s arrest; however, the documents are not yet available.

In 2017, Sandoval worked as an intern at the Smith County Records Services Department through Texas College’s Criminal Justice Program.

According to a news release from Smith County in 2017, Sandoval was born in Brownsville and moved to Tyler in 2012. He attended Texas College on a soccer scholarship.