The Colorado sheriff who told 9NEWS he took a vacation in August and was handling the job from Florida through email entered Sheriff’s Office buildings eight times in nearly five months, according to records obtained by 9NEWS.
In early August, Park County Sheriff Fred Wegener announced he would retire from the job he’d held for nearly 20 years and would not seek reelection. Soon after, Wegener withdrew his resignation and kept his sheriff’s salary.
In an email sent to 9NEWS on Dec. 6, Wegener wrote, “I came down to Florida in August on vacation, as you can imagine I have quite a little bit. I am back and forth, handling the day to day issues by e-mail. Thank you for you [sic] interest.”
Wegener left the county in the midst of an investigation into the murder of 17-year-old Maggie Long and a federal lawsuit involving the 2016 shooting death of Cpl. Nate Carrigan.
Since August, Wegener has been active on Facebook, posting several photos of himself holding fish and commenting on the page of a Florida fishing group.
Records requested by 9NEWS shed light on how often Wegener may be working in the state that elected him. The records show the date and time Wegener entered a sheriff’s office building using a keypad system between Jan. 1 and Dec. 14, 2018.
Park County Undersheriff Dave Wholers told 9NEWS the entry records don’t account for the times staff buzzed Sheriff Wegener through the front door of the Sheriff’s Office headquarters in Fairplay.
Records show Wegener used the keypad entry system more frequently in the months before he claimed to take a vacation. In July, he entered a Sheriff's Office building on 14 different days. Records from August show four entries.
In September, Wegener entered buildings on two different days. There were no records of entry for October and two recorded entries in November. There were no recorded entries in December through the 14th, which was the date the data was compiled.
The records show Wegener entered the “squad room” of the Sheriff’s Office substation in Bailey three times since the beginning of 2018.
Since the beginning of August, Wegener collected $29,461.45, according to Sheriff’s Office records.
During a public comment portion of a Dec. 13 Park County commissioners meeting, 9NEWS asked commissioners if it was appropriate for Wegener to be paid while working from Florida.
“We’re a statutory county, which means that the sheriff is a statutory position,” answered Commissioner Dick Elsner. “We as board of county commissioners have absolutely no control over the sheriff.”
9NEWS asked commissioners to address community concerns about leadership, staffing and morale in the Sheriff’s Office.
“One, I have a problem with the citizens of Park County going through the news to talk to us,” Elsner said. “I have not received emails concerning the sheriff. We as – me personally, yes, I know we have issues.”
During a Dec. 20 commissioners meeting, 9NEWS asked commissioners again about community concerns and the sheriff's absence.
"It's not something that I think is on a lot of people's minds,” Elsner said. “I think they are worried. But I honestly think most people look at it and say, ‘yeah, we're disappointed in our sheriff.’ I'm disappointed in our sheriff.”
Commissioners told 9NEWS Wegener rents a home in Park County and is still registered to vote.
“Perhaps having a rental property in Park County is enough to satisfy the letter of the law, but it doesn’t sound like the citizens of Park County are getting what they’re paying for which is a sheriff on duty basically 24-7,” said 9NEWS legal analyst Scott Robinson.
On January 8, Tom McGraw will take over as sheriff in Park County. Before then, Wegener will collect at least one more paycheck as he runs out his term on vacation.
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