New sex scandal arises with officer’s arrest
Cop befriended prostitute, then warned her about upcoming stings, police say
OAKLAND — Still reeling from a massive sex-misconduct scandal, the Oakland Police Department was punched again Thursday with revelations that another officer has been accused of prostitution-related crimes.
The Wednesday arrest of Officer Ryan Walterhouse prolongs the public embarrassment for a department embroiled in the scandal involving several of its officers and the teenage daughter of a police dispatcher. Five Oakland officers are facing charges in that case, which is unrelated to the allegations against Walterhouse.
Making the latest allegations particularly painful is the fact that Walterhouse was allegedly paying a prostitute and tipping her off to stings at the same time his fellow officers were appearing in court for similar crimes.
Authorities say Walterhouse had befriended a prostitute and twice told her to stay off the streets because of undercover operations. Weeks earlier, Officer Brian Bunton pleaded not guilty in court to tipping off an exploited teen to a prostitution sting in exchange for sex. Walterhouse also allegedly paid the woman for sex in a Castro Valley motel.
“It is incredibly disturbing that in light of what happened this summer any officer could think it was at all acceptable to engage in this type of behavior,” Mayor Libby Schaaf said Thursday. “It is completely outrageous.”
Walterhouse, 26, was arrested as he arrived for work Wednesday evening and charged Thursday with two felony counts of conspiracy to obstruct justice and misdemeanor engaging in an act of prostitution. Some of the crimes were committed while he was on duty, Deputy Chief John Lois said. An Oakland police officer brought the allegations to authorities, and police began surveillance of Walterhouse, Lois said.
Court documents show the officer met the woman at a Castro Valley motel on Oct. 1 and allegedly paid for sex.
On Oct. 13 and Oct. 14, he tipped her off to stings, according to court records. On those days, the FBI was conducting nationwide sting operations, including in Alameda County, to find child sex-trafficking suspects and victims. Walterhouse patrolled Area 3, a part of East Oakland with a high concentration of sex workers.
“You might want to call it an early night tonight. They may or may not be doing something right now,” he told the woman, according to an affidavit by Officer Omega Crum.
“Yeah, you might want to stick to the online thing right now.”
In an interview with detectives, Walterhouse confessed to giving the woman, whom he met six months ago, information about the covert operations, according to Crum. A message left on Walterhouse’s cellphone was not returned Thursday.
The arrest of another Oakland police officer — at least the eighth since December — has left critics wondering what has gone wrong with the department’s recruitment practices. Of the eight arrested, six were rookies. Three attended Oakland’s police academy, and three others, including Walterhouse, graduated from other academies all within the past three years.
In addition to the five Oakland officers, a Contra Costa Sheriff’s deputy and a Livermore officer have been charged or are facing charges for their involvement with the exploited teen who previously went by the name Celeste Guap. Some of the officers had sex with her when she was underage; others gave her information in exchange for sex.
“I hope this is not the tip of an iceberg,” civil rights attorney John Burris said of Walterhouse’s arrest. “You would have thought the other cases would have served as a deterrent; however, it did not apparently.”
In the wake of the scan- dals, Oakland police have restructured their academy to have stronger background checks and smaller class sizes to weed out unqualified candidates, Deputy Chief Danielle Outlaw said.
City and police leaders, Burris and attorney Pamela Price said they were encouraged that it was a police officer who brought the allegations against Walterhouse to authorities.
“You hate to see (the crimes) happening, but I’m pleased they are taking it seriously,” said Price, who previously represented the teenager exploited by police.
Walterhouse is out of custody on $20,000 bail. He is scheduled to appear for arraignment at 2 p.m. Friday in Hayward at the same time as Oakland Officer Giovanni LoVerde. LoVerde is facing a felony count of oral copulation with a minor.