02/27/2020—Rocky Ford Police Officer James Lopez is facing charges of Distribution of a Controlled Substance and Official Misconduct stemming from an incident in southeast Colorado in December 2019.
It’s alleged Lopez confiscated marijuana during the course of an active police investigation in the Rocky Ford area and later brought approximately one pound of marijuana to the home an acquaintance (not associated with law enforcement) and later packaged the narcotics for apparent distribution.
On February 25, 2020, District Attorney James Bullock with the 16th Judicial District Attorney’s Office filed the charges against Lopez.
Lopez was issued a felony summons and is expected to appear in court at the Otero District Court in La Junta, Colorado on March 30, 2020 at 11:00 am.
Lopez was placed on administrative leave by the Rocky Ford Police Department in January 2020.
The investigation is being conducted by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Rocky Ford Police Department and 16th Judicial District Attorney’s Office and remains ongoing.
No mugshot of Lopez is available at this time.