MEAD VALLEY: Sheriff deputy arrested, accused of sexual battery, other charges

MEAD VALLEY – Riverside County Sheriff’s officials announced the arrest of a member of their own department Friday, March 10, after sexual battery allegations against the sheriff deputy were reported to authorities.

Investigators arrested Andrew Chuan Dinh, 37, of Mead Valley, in the area of El Dorado Road and Cole Avenue, in the unincorporated community of Mead Valley.

After an investigation, authorities booked Dinh into the Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside on suspicion of sexual penetration by force, a felony.

Dinh was also booked on suspicion of sexual battery and invasion of privacy by camcorder or other recording device, both misdemeanors.

Very few details have been released about the investigation, which began just after midnight Friday, when deputies from the Perris Sheriff station received a report of the alleged sexual battery, according to a press release from Riverside Sheriff’s Public Information Officer Sergeant Chris Durham.

“Dinh is a sworn peace officer for the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department,” Durham explained. His peace officer powers have been suspended in the wake of his arrest.

During their investigation, deputies and investigators identified Dinh, who was off-duty at the time of the alleged incident, as the suspect. At the conclusion of their investigation officials arrested Dinh.

It was not immediately known which sheriff’s station Dinh was assigned to work at or how long he had been with the department.

No information was released about the victim or the alleged circumstances that led to Dinh’s arrest.

An online jail records search revealed Dinh was released the same day of his arrest after posting $55,000 bail. He is scheduled to be arraigned at the Riverside Hall of Justice March 14.

Anyone with information for this investigation is encouraged to contact Investigator David Horn at 951-486-6700. Callers can refer to incident file number PC170690006 and can remain anonymous. Citizens may also submit a tip using the Sheriff’s CrimeTips online form.

 

Contact the writer: [email protected]

 

Trevor Montgomery, 47, recently moved to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, The Valley Chronicle, and Anza Valley Outlook; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and Mountain Echo in Shasta County.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 28 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 14 – but soon to be 16 – grandchildren.