Federico Carlo, a former Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy, alleges that he was wrongfully terminated after refusing to participate in law enforcement gang activity, according to a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court. Carlo claims he was falsely accused of misconduct and abruptly fired by an acting commander overseeing training and personnel, whom he alleges is a member of the Regulator deputy gang. The lawsuit asserts that Carlo faced retaliation and harassment for years before his termination in April 2023, according to the Los Angeles Times. “On April 13, 2023, plaintiff was terminated under false pretenses,” the suit says. “Captain Pat [Macdonald], the supervisor who made the decision on plaintiff’s termination, is a tattooed Regulator deputy gang member.” The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has a history of allegations regarding deputy gangs, with high-ranking officials accused of affiliations with such groups.
Carlo's legal battle traces back to 2005 when he alleges a deputy associated with the Regulators labeled him a "rat" for refusing to falsify reports. Subsequent incidents, including being flunked out of training and facing harassment from colleagues, “had everything to do” with the fact that he “was not a member of a deputy gang and refused to violate the law,” Carlo alleges. The lawsuit claims that false accusations of misconduct, involving a Nazi salute and sharing of explicit photos, were used to justify Carlo's firing. The Regulators have faced scrutiny for years, with allegations of misconduct and control over station affairs. Comparisons have been drawn between the group and previous controversial deputy gangs like the Lynwood Vikings. a now-defunct group once described by a federal judge as a “neo-Nazi white supremacist gang." Last week the sheriff’s officials said the issue is “not reflective of the entire department” and pointed out that there are “multiple investigations related to deputy gangs” currently underway, and that a new anti-gang policy is being negotiated with the deputy labor unions.