FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN/KMJ) — After an investigation by the FBI, a former Fresno police detective has been arrested for allegedly stealing cash from the department’s evidence room.
Investigators with the FBI claim 10-year veteran Rey Medeles stole $60,000 from the department’s evidence room. He was taken into custody on Thursday and is due in court Medeles on October 23rd.
Booking photo of Rey Medeles, 37, of Fresno. Photo: FCSO
Fresno Police Chief Mindy Casto is calling the arrest “not a proud moment.”
Investigators say the alleged theft was discovered back in May of 2024 and they reached out to the FBI with concerns the incident could be “part of a larger problem.” Medeles was fired in June.
“As Chief of the Fresno Police Department, I am deeply troubled by the former detective’s conduct and its impact on the trust we work to build and maintain with the Fresno community. Although this arrest is not a proud moment for me or our department, I want to reassure the public that when we discover serious misconduct, we take swift and decisive action to address it, to include calling in our state and federal partners when necessary,” Chief Casto said in a statement.
Chief Casto is promising to continue protecting and serving the Fresno community.
“Yes, there are things we have looked at. We examined our own practices, and we have taken numerous steps to make sure this isn’t able to happen. Again, this isn’t something that was a lack of policy. This is because an individual willfully intentionally abused his authority and was dishonest in what he did when he took that money.”
Chief Casto says all the cases he worked on are now being reviewed.
Listen to the report by KMJ’s Liz Kern.
