San Mateo Sheriff and alleged boyfriend described as 'cult of two': report ...Middle East

(KRON) -- Tensions and turmoil caused by San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus' relationship with an alleged boyfriend were detailed in a new investigation report released by county leaders on Thursday.

The investigation was triggered by a claim filed by Corpus against County Executive Mike Callagy. Corpus is on the brink of losing her job. Her short tenure as sheriff has been rocked by scandals with deputies accusing Corpus and Victor Aenlle of lying and creating a hostile working environment.

Witnesses told investigators that the sheriff and Aenlle are in a romantic relationship. Sheriff's captain Paul Kunkel told investigators that the duo is essentially "a cult of two."

Callagy told investigators that he wanted Corpus to be successful and believed she could have been a "rock star" sheriff. "However, he felt she ultimately gave all her power away to Aenlle, which led to her professional challenges," the report states.

Aenlle served as Corpus' campaign manager and chief of staff until county leaders later ousted him.

In a September 2024 letter to the Board of Supervisors, Corpus formally accused Callagy of bullying and discriminating against her because she is a Latina woman. The sheriff wrote, "I write to you with an immediate call to action to address the retaliation, abuse of power, sexual discrimination, and bullying tactics of your employee, County Executive Mike Callagy. Mr. Callagy told me that I had to inform him of when and who I dated within the county -- a request I found not only offensive but demeaning and discriminatory. I was shocked and appalled. I cannot imagine he would have made such a request of my predecessors, all of whom were men."

Corpus filed a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department on February 11.

This week, the Board of Supervisors publicly released findings from the investigation, which was conducted by Oppenheimer Investigations Group, an independent law firm. OIG cleared Callagy of wrongdoing for nearly every allegation leveled against him.

When Corpus was elected as sheriff in 2022, she selected four people to be on her leadership transition team: Aenlle, Lieutenant Dan Guiney, Assistant Sheriff Jeff Kearnan, and Captain Paul Kunkel. Kearnan and Kunkel were interviewed for OIG's investigation.

Kunkel, who worked in the sheriff's office for 16 years, told investigators that Corpus and Aenlle acted like "a cult of two," the report states. Kunkel said Callagy is highly respected in the law enforcement community and "very pro-law enforcement."

Jeff Kearnan worked for the Sheriff’s Office for 28 years. "Kearnan said he received confirmation of an affair between Corpus and Aenlle from Corpus’ husband," the report states.

The report continues, "Kearnan said that, during the first transition team meeting, he met Aenlle, a volunteer Sheriff Reserve Officer. During this and subsequent meetings, Kearnan realized Aenlle was creating a position for himself: Corpus’ Chief of Staff. Kearnan expressed his concerns about this, explaining to the transition team that Aenlle could not work at the executive level because he was not qualified. Aenlle ran the transition team meetings, and Corpus deferred to him. Kearnan recalled an occasion when he, Kunkel, and Guiney scheduled a Zoom call with Corpus and asked that Aenlle not be present. Corpus took the Zoom call from her car, and when they asked if she was with Aenlle, she responded, 'No.' However, they could see a reflection of Aenlle on the windshield of her vehicle from her video feed. Kearnan realized Corpus was lying to them."

In September 2022, Kearnan had a conversation with John Kovach, Corpus' husband. The husband confirmed that Corpus was having an affair with Aenlle, the report states.

During the conversation, Kovach told Kearnan that he was supposed to go on a trip to Hawaii with his wife and their two children.

"However, Corpus told him the flight was sold out, so he stayed home. Upon his family’s return, his daughter told him that when he dropped them off at the airport, Aenlle was inside waiting for them, and Aenlle went with them to Hawaii," the report states.

The sheriff claimed that Callagy bullied her and demanded information about her personal relationships because she is a woman.

Corpus wrote in her letter to the Board of Supervisors, "Since day one, Mr. Callagy has continued to overstep his authority, routinely inserting himself into the operations of the Sheriff’s Office. He has supported the group of employees referred to as the good ol boy system from the previous administration and has empowered them."

Callagy felt obligated to address a potential conflict of interest situation after Corpus hired Aenlle as chief of staff, the report states. The county executive said the sheriff denied having the romantic relationship. Callagy said the sheriff told him, "If I sit next to a guy, people are going to say I’m having an affair with him. I’m a married woman."

In March, San Mateo County voters passed Measure A, giving county supervisors the authority to remove the embattled sheriff.

Corpus rehired Aenlle as reserve deputy a few weeks ago. Eliot Storch of the San Mateo County Deputy Sheriff’s Association said, “It’s a middle finger to everybody who cares about morals and ethics. Corpus hired her alleged boyfriend to be in a role, despite no one wanting her to be here."

The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to release the OIG report publicly, and declared that the sheriff's complaint had "no merit."

Oppenheimer Investigations Group made the following conclusions:

OIG: "Not sustained. In her September 22, 2024 letter, Corpus said that Callagy made an inappropriate and offensive request during their first meeting: to inform Callagy of when and who she dated within the County. Callagy denied doing this. He said that, rather, he asked Corpus about her personal relationship with Dr. Victor Aenlle out of concern for a potential conflict of interest. He said he did so after receiving multiple concerns about these rumors."

OIG: "Not sustained. A preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that Callagy treated Corpus differently because of her race, ethnicity, and/or gender. As with many of her other allegations, Corpus made this assertion against Callagy based on broad, sweeping statements without providing a factual basis for the assertion. None of the witnesses interviewed supported that they observed incidents of Callagy treating Corpus, themselves, or others poorly due to a discriminatory animus."

"Not sustained. A preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that Callagy publicly released Cordell’s investigation report via an Instagram post."

OIG: "Not sustained. A preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that Callagy negotiated and agreed to double overtime with the Deputy Sheriffs’ Association without discussing the decision with Corpus first."

OIG: "Not sustained. A preponderance of the evidence does not support a finding that Callagy negatively interfered with Corpus’ negotiations for contract city police services."

OIG: "Sustained. A preponderance of the evidence supports a finding that Callagy blocked Monaghan’s termination. Callagy did so because of his concerns about legal liability due to a potential retaliation claim on the part of Monaghan."

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