Bernalillo County Sheriff Dan Houston says he has opened a criminal investigation into free tickets provided to county officials for concerts at Mesa del Sol’s Pavilion amphitheater.
Houston made the announcement to reporters Friday afternoon. He didn’t say who would be targeted or reveal other specifics.
Investigators, Houston said, executed a search warrant Friday on the county’s Public Information Department to get documents.
That drew a sharp response from the county administration, which said many of the records had already been made available last month to reporters who simply asked for them.
“We are surprised and disappointed at the action the sheriff chose to take today,” interim County Manager Tom Zdunek said in a written statement. “It was not necessary, and appears to indicate a level of distrust that is disheartening; however, we intend to cooperate fully with the investigation.”
The county administration also said “it would be more appropriate for an outside law-enforcement agency to conduct the investigation, so that the public can be assured that the investigation will be conducted in an impartial manner.”
Houston said investigators sought a warrant only after county staffers were evasive.
Houston said his office has been looking at how much the pavilion operator, Live Nation, was billed for services provided by sheriff’s deputies. It appeared to be less than others had paid for the service, he said.
“There seem to be a lot of questions,” said Houston, who took office just this year. “… The public deserves the answers to those questions.”
Houston said he would also look into whether the county received free tickets to University of New Mexico basketball games.
The Journal reported last month that the county had been receiving free concert tickets and premiere seating in a high-priced box at the Pavilion amphitheater. The county subleases the pavilion to Live Nation, which operates it.
The ticket deal had started out with only about a dozen free concert tickets, but it was quietly expanded in 2009 or 2010 – without being put in writing – to about 20 more tickets and a box provided to the county manager’s office for each concert, County Commission Chairwoman Maggie Hart Stebbins told the Journal in May.
She said she objected to the deal and put a stop to it. Live Nation didn’t seem to like the arrangement either, Stebbins said, at least partly because it wasn’t in writing.
Stebbins wasn’t immediately available for comment Friday afternoon, and the Journal was unable to reach a Live Nation spokeswoman.
Houston said he expects deputies to talk, at some point, to former County Manager Thaddeus Lucero. Lucero said Friday that he’d done nothing wrong, never went to any concerts and that he’ll happily provide information to the sheriff.
Commission Vice Chairman Art De La Cruz said he would “respect the sheriff’s decision to launch the criminal investigation. I don’t think there’s a more serious review you can take than doing it that way.”
The sheriff’s investigation comes after Stebbins and Houston had a public dispute over whether his department can sell a helicopter and use the proceeds to buy other vehicles.
Reprint story -- Email the reporter at dmckay@abqjournal.com. Call the reporter at 505-823-3566
