Placer deputy arrested on rape charges; second sex misconduct case for Sheriff’s Office
Detectives on Friday arrested a Placer County sheriff’s deputy accused of sexually assaulting two people he was dating.
Richard Wes Montz, 37, of Rocklin was arrested on suspicion of rape and sodomy of an intoxicated person, the Placer County Sheriff’s Office announced on Friday. This is the second time in three days that the Sheriff’s Office has announced an arrest stemming from allegations of sexual misconduct by a deputy.
Montz on Friday afternoon remained in custody at the Placer County Jail, where he was being held without bail.
Sheriff’s officials said they first learned of the allegations against Montz on March 14 and launched an investigation into the deputy. Montz was placed on administrative leave, and the Sheriff’s Office submitted its investigation to the Placer County District Attorney’s Office.
The investigation revealed two victims who were in a dating relationship with Montz, sheriff’s officials said.
Montz, who has worked for the Sheriff’s Office since 2012, remained on administrative leave Friday as sheriff’s officials continued their internal investigation. Montz earned $132,904 in total pay working as a sheriff’s deputy in 2022 in Placer County, according to Transparent California.
In a written statement, Sheriff Wayne Woo said his office has already reported the investigation’s findings to the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training. He also said the Sheriff’s Office, moving forward, will re-evaluate its hiring process to ensure “only the highest quality people” are selected.
“There is absolutely no tolerance for misconduct from employees at the sheriff’s office. This incident is not a representation of the culture we have worked so hard to maintain,” Woo said in the statement. “We uphold our core values to the highest degree and any misconduct that meets the threshold for criminal prosecution will be dealt with as such.”
On Wednesday, the Sheriff’s Office announced the arrest of Jon Patrick Persinger, a former deputy who has been accused of forcing a woman to perform sex acts at her home after she tried to report a theft.
Sheriff’s officials have said they first learned of the allegations against Persinger on Jan. 12, the same day the 58-year-old Auburn woman’s attorney filed a claim seeking damages from Placer County.
The county later rejected the woman’s legal claim, so she filed a civil lawsuit alleging Persinger — then a deputy dressed in his sheriff’s uniform with his badge and gun — sexually assaulted her on two occasions last fall. She alleges Persinger forced her to perform sex acts, fearing he would report or arrest her for working as an escort.
Persinger, 44, also of Rocklin, was arrested on suspicion of soliciting prostitution while he was on- and off-duty and engaging in unlawful access to law enforcement telecommunications data, sheriff’s officials said.
