DALLAS _ A Dallas County sheriff's deputy was arrested Thursday after he was accused of stealing from a Home Depot store destroyed by a tornado last month.
Home Depot's corporate office notified the sheriff's office that one of its deputies, Joseph Bobadilla, had stolen from the store on Forest Lane, which was leveled when several tornadoes tore through the Dallas area Oct. 20.
Bobadilla, 25, was booked into the Dallas County Jail about noon Thursday on a charge of theft of property between $750 and $2,500. As a public servant, he faces an enhanced theft charge, a state jail felony, authorities said. He posted a $500 bond about 1:40 p.m., records show.
The sheriff's office said Bobadilla had been working off-duty guarding the Home Depot store after it was destroyed.
"During his shifts, Bobadilla would take items from the store and later exchange them at another location for in-store credit, subsequently purchasing items with the in-store credits he received," the sheriff's office said in a news release.
Sheriff Marian Brown said in a written statement that the office doesn't support employees who break the law.
"Our core values are integrity, professionalism and accountability and as a result, we will follow the proper procedures and guidelines in place to uphold the law and ensure the deputy is held responsible for his actions," she said.
The sheriff's office said detectives were serving a search warrant Thursday morning in connection with the thefts.
A spokesman for the sheriff's office said Bobadilla had been hired as a detention service officer in 2014, then was promoted in 2016 and assigned to traffic enforcement.
