Dep. Frank Methola was scheduled for trial last week on numerous traffic citations.

Valencia County sheriff’s Deputy Frank Methola has been placed on administrative leave after he failed to appear in court last Tuesday and was placed under arrest two days later, the Valencia County News-Bulletin reported.

Los Lunas Magistrate Judge John “Buddy” Sanchez said Methola had been scheduled to appear for trial on numerous citations stemming from a traffic crash in Rio Communities last November, including careless driving and failure to stop at a stop sign, the News-Bulletin said.

Sheriff Rene Rivera said Methola was chasing a burglary suspect when he was struck by an oncoming car at a Rio Communities intersection, and he was cited after a State Police investigation into the incident, the paper reported.

The judge said he waited about 10 minutes for Methola to appear in court last Tuesday, then issued a bench warrant for his arrest, the News-Bulletin said.

“He was treated no differently than anyone in the public,” Sanchez said. “It caused a lot of inconvenience for a lot of people … Now they are going to have to take off again for another date because he failed to appear in court.”

Deputy Chris Trujillo told the News-Bulletin that an internal investigation has been launched into the matter.

A new hearing date hasn’t been set yet, the paper reported.