"Lost and found cash as well as bills recovered in some criminal cases will be deposited in special account
The Sterling Police Department will have a little more space in its evidence room, thanks to a decision by the Sterling City Council Tuesday night.
During his report to the council, City Manager Don Saling said the SPD wanted to be able to put money that it recovers or receives by various means, including criminal investigations as well as money that has been found and turned in, into a special bank account, rather than keeping it in the evidence room as it is now. However, the Bank of Colorado required a signed copy of council minutes giving permission to do so before it would open an account for that purpose.
Saling noted that they estimated around $29,000 is being held in the evidence room. While that room is secure, he said they feel it would be safer if it was simply deposited in the bank.
The account would have safeguards such as requiring an authorized representative from the SPD to sign checks in order to release the funds. However, City Attorney Curt Penny had questions about chain of custody concerns for cash that might be evidence in a crime.
Sterling Police Chief Tyson Kerr explained that if they recover cash that might have physical evidence, such as fingerprints, on it, that money wouldn't be deposited, as once it goes in the bank, they would no longer be able to access those particular bills. However, he said a lot of the money they are holding now is involved in fraud cases, and therefore they do not need to hold it in evidence. He added that it is common and considered best practice to deposit such funds in an account rather than holding on to the cash. The council authorized the account on a 6-0 vote, with council member Brenda Desormeaux absent.
"It's really crazy I never thought I'd see the gun again ever. We had gone on vacation to Table Rock Lake, and they broke in through the basement of the house, stole it and two other shotguns and my wife's jewelry," Smith said when Jefferson County Sheriff's Department called to tell him they had his rifle in evidence.
The Sheriff's Department said smith could come to the station to get it. Smith thought it was a scam call. Turns out it wasn't.
"Deputy Morgan who is one of our evidence custodians started doing some backtracking," Jefferson County Sheriff's Department Spokesperson Grant Bissell said. "He looked at the report from 2009. He realized, okay we are going to have to do a lot of digging on this because reports from way back in the 70s are on a microfilm, stuff they had to get a special machine to read."
The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office shared the news on Facebook. A department spokesman tells FOX2 that the rifle was recovered as part of an unrelated 2009 investigation and had been in evidence.
"These days, our evidence division is working hard to return stolen property whenever they can to the rightful owner," spokesman Grant Bissell told FOX2 via email. "Yesterday's story was a result of their hard work."
"It looked the same, I'd forgotten what it looked like really, and the memories all came back," Smith said. "I bought a new carrying case for it and that and something to store it with, so it'll be kept nice."
Smith said he'd only had the rifle for about 4 years before it was stolen. He bought the rifle to deer hunt but said his knees don't let him get around like he used to.
"I'll pass this gun down to my son, and I'm sure he'll appreciate it his whole life because he knows the value of a rifle is more than just a dollar sign," Smith said. "I have another rifle that was passed down to me from one of my brothers and he got killed in WWI, it's a 22 rifle and he was a good shot and everything and I ended up with that rifle so I know its worth something to have a gun passed down to you."
"I think this is just a small example of what happens across this department on a daily basis that doesn't get noticed," Bissell said.
Commenters on the Facebook post noted that despite the age of the weapon, it appeared to be in good condition despite its journey.
Smith Agreed.
"I was really surprised, it’s really in excellent shape, it looks like new really," Chris said. "The leather strap, the metal, the wood all looks good, scope looks good, everything looks good."
