New charges filed against man accused of taking PSPD Chief’s SUV
A man facing charges for allegedly driving an unmarked police SUV assigned to Palm Springs Police Chief Bryan Reyes appeared in court at the Larson Justice Center in Indio today. William Leon Menser’s arraignment will be delayed until May 2nd to allow him time to find private counsel, the judge ruled today.
On Monday, prosecutors filed new charges against Menser that include being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition.
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In a declaration in support of his arrest warrant, PSPD says that they conducted a search warrant at his property in Indio. On January 4th, they put Menser under surveillance and later arrested him that morning when he left his home.
The Gang Task Force searched his vehicle and located boxes of various types of ammo in his trunk, some in boxes with shipping labels with his name on them. They also found a PSPD baseball cap.
During a search of Menser’s home, they located a taser sitting out on a table. They also found a black plastic rifle case with a closed ammo can on top of it in a closet. The case was not locked, and located inside officers found a black Mossberg AR-15 style 22 caliber rifle.
They also located a small magazine holster. They also found under his bed a box that contained a federal Agent ATF badge and a collapsible baton and a double magazine pouch.
In another closet, they located a plastic container that contained a replica silencer to an airsoft rifle, replica practice flash-bang stun grenades, a drop holster that appeared to be made for a Glock firearm, a Piranha Spike Police strip and a Palm Springs Police citation book with several missing citations in it.
Menser is a convicted felon and cannot be in possession of or have access to any firearms, ammunition, stun guns or several of the other items found according to the declaration. Menser was originally charged with a felony count of embezzlement and a misdemeanor count of impersonating a police officer. A new case was also filed today with two felony counts of being a convicted felon in possession of firearms and ammunition.
According to court documents obtained by KESQ News Channel 3 and CBS Local 2, William Leon Menser admitted to taking the Ford Explorer home from his workplace, Rembrandt’s Paint and Body, on Bankside Drive in Cathedral City.
After he took the vehicle, he attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a citizen who turned out to be a city employee. The SUV reportedly had its lights and sirens activated during the attempted traffic stop. The city employee later reported the incident, which led to Menser’s arrest.
The Palm Springs PD incident is not the first time that Menser has been accused of stealing a police vehicle, according to prosecutors. In 2014, Menser and a co-defendant were arrested for stealing a Glendale Police Department vehicle from the Orange County Sheriff’s Academy. He pleaded guilty later that year to car theft, grand theft auto and receiving stolen property.
Menser was released on $100,000 bail.
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