The Sierra Vista Police Department has released additional details regarding the arrest of Paul Correa, the Chief Civil Deputy County Attorney for Cochise County, following an incident on Wednesday evening at a Target store.
According to SVPD, officers responded to the Target near East Highway 90 around 6:30 p.m. after a store employee reported a vehicle blocking another vehicle in the parking lot.
While investigating, officers learned Correa allegedly followed a juvenile female inside the store and recorded her with his cellphone.
Police say the juvenile’s father later confronted Correa in the parking lot and reported seeing him watching a video of his daughter with his pants disheveled.
SVPD seized Correa’s personal and work-issued cellphones and obtained a search warrant to examine the devices as part of the investigation.
On Thursday, Correa was arrested during a high-risk traffic stop in Benson with assistance from the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office.
Correa was booked into the Cochise County Jail on charges of evidence tampering and public sexual indecency, and SVPD says the investigation remains ongoing.
According to a news release from Cochise County, the county's attorney general, Lori Zucco fired Paul Correa immediately after being informed by SVPD of the nature of the allegations.
Zucco met with the victims involved in the incident, Sierra Vista Police Department Command staff and county Sheriff Mark Dannels Thursday, prior to Correa's firing.
“The allegations in this case are deeply disturbing, particularly for an officer of the court and public employee entrusted with the public’s confidence,“ Zucco said in a news release. “As a career prosecutor for more than 20 years, I have zero tolerance for alleged conduct that so fundamentally violates the standards of this office. While Mr. Correa is entitled to due process in the criminal justice system, he can no longer serve in any capacity in my office.”
Zucco said in the news release that his termination is an employment decision.
It is separate from the ongoing criminal investigation, which will be handled by the La Paz County Attorney's Office.
