SJFD captain arrested on suspicion of stealing fire station drugs

SAN JOSE A veteran San Jose fire captain was arrested Thursday on suspicion of stealing controlled substances from at least one city fire station according to government Related Articles Prop aims to force drug offenders into medication That s yet to happen in these Bay Area counties San Jose pedestrian hit by driver in dies of injuries Multiple incidents of juvenile shenanigans in Los Gatos Woman arrested on suspicion of hate crime in Palo Alto San Jose cold-case inquiry links baseball bat killing to deceased man On Monday the San Jose Fire Department published the discovery of several drugs in its custody that were potentially damaged or tampered with a San Jose police spokesperson commented A preliminary inquiry proven multiple substances had been tampered with and particular were uncovered to be missing according to police Detectives identified San Jose fire Capt Mark Moalem as the chief suspect and obtained search and arrest warrants Additional evidence linking Moalem to the theft was discovered during a search of his home police explained Moalem was booked into Santa Clara County jail on charges including burglary and child endangerment as well as for narcotics-related offenses according to police The fire department conducted an audit of its controlled substances and it is suspected that drugs may have been taken from an additional fire stations and tampered with the offices of the San Jose city manager and mayor explained in a joint declaration Lives depend on our firefighters ability to administer health care during emergencies which is why we take theft of controlled substances extremely seriously Mayor Matt Mahan noted I m grateful to our city manager and police chief for acting fleetly and decisively by opening an study and holding those responsible accountable City Manager Jennifer Maguire added that she will not tolerate criminal behavior The accusations are deeply concerning and represent a serious breach of society trust she revealed I want to be unequivocal any conduct that endangers population safety or undermines the integrity of our constituents institution will be addressed with the utmost seriousness Moalem who joined the fire department in was charged with drug-related offenses in and ultimately received a deferred judgment San Jose Fire Chief Robert Sapien Jr reported in a declaration After meeting court requirements under the deferred judgment Moalem was subject to disciplinary action by the city and was required to submit to random drug testing over several years according to the fire chief Moalem nearly lost his paramedic license as a upshot of the episode Sapien explained Sapien s message also provided additional details about the current incident On Monday during an inspection and restock of fire station medications containers of controlled substances were ascertained to be damaged and suspected to have been tampered with at a fire station he noted In the ensuing hours and with inhabitants safety and operational readiness as my primary concerns Sapien stated the San Jose Fire Department cooperated fully with the San Jose Police Department s probe notified the Drug Enforcement Agency the county Exigency Healthcare Services Agency and expedited inspection of the controlled substance inventory department-wide removing any inventory that had even the slightest indication of achievable damage or tampering Moalem is not working and was last onsite on Tuesday according to the fire chief I along with the entire San Jose Fire Department am beyond disappointed in the actions and crimes alleged thus far as they are antithetical to the mission and values of the department Sapien disclosed Anyone with information related to the matter can contact the police department at - - Check back for updates