HARLINGEN — A case involving former longtime Willacy County law enforcement official Andres Maldonado has been turned over to the Cameron County District Attorney’s Office, Texas State Technical College’s spokesman said Thursday.
TSTC turned over the case to the district attorney’s office after the college’s Harlingen campus police department investigated complaints stemming from Maldonado’s job as an instructor at the Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council’s Regional Police Academy, officials said.
Maldonado could not be reached for comment Thursday.
“Texas State Technical College continues to cooperate with the investigating authorities and will not comment further on this open-pending law enforcement investigation,” Peter Macias, TSTC’s executive director of communications, stated at the college’s Waco offices.
The investigation stems from police academy cadets’ complaints accusing Maldonado of assault and official oppression, Manuel Cruz, the Lower Rio Grande Valley Development Council’s executive director, said.
“We take it very serious,” he said, referring to the complaints.
Cruz said the cadets complained of assault and official oppression in January, leading to an investigation conducted by TSTC’s police department and the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement.
Cruz said Maldonado was fired for failing to address questions regarding the complaints.
During a career spanning three decades, Maldonado became one of Willacy County’s top law enforcement officials.
After a career as a state trooper, he served as Lyford’s police chief before taking over as major at the Willacy County Sheriff’s Office in 2019.
In 2020, Maldonado ran for sheriff, losing his bid to Sheriff Joe Salazar in a runoff election.
