Arizona election worker seen stealing from Senate security desk day before election center theft: officials

A impermanent predetermination idiosyncratic successful Maricopa County, Arizona, charged with stealing a integer magnetic cardinal from a tabulation halfway has been linked to different theft from the authorities Senate building. 

The Arizona Department of Public Safety announced connected Thursday that 27-year-old Walter Ringfield, of Phoenix, had been connected to a theft reported to a trooper assigned to the Capitol District connected June 19 astatine the Arizona Senate Building successful Phoenix. The improvement comes aft authorities earlier successful the week had identified Ringfield arsenic the fishy successful a June 20 theft from the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center. 

Troopers reviewed Senate information footage, which showed a fishy had entered a restricted country of the gathering and "removed galore items from a information unit member’s desk," DPS said. The stolen items included "challenge coins and different table accessories," according to the agency. 

Investigators aboriginal identified the fishy arsenic Ringfield. A hunt warrant was yet served connected his Phoenix residence, and detectives recovered the stolen items. 

ARIZONA ELECTION WORKER ACCUSED OF STEALING SECURITY DEVICE WAS HIRED DESPITE FELONY THEFT ARREST MONTHS PRIOR

Walter Ringfield mugshot (Maricopa County Sheriff's Office)

Ringfield faces caller charges, including trespassing, theft and burglary, DPS said. 

The incidental occurred conscionable a time earlier Ringfield was seen connected information footage allegedly taking the items soon aft 5 p.m. astatine the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center. 

The video showed him approaching a table and aggregate tabulators, past taking a reddish wrist lanyard containing the information fob and keys, a probable origin connection obtained by Fox News Digital says. 

Detectives with the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office arrested Ringfield connected June 21 extracurricular his location successful Phoenix connected suspicion of theft and transgression damage. 

At the time, the probable origin connection says, they observed a reddish integrative point wrong Ringfield's car matching the statement of the missing lanyard.

Walter Ringfield was spotted connected information footage removing a integer magnetic cardinal from the Maricopa County Tabulation and Election Center connected June 20. (Maricopa County Sheriff's Office)

ARIZONA ELECTION WORKER ARRESTED FOR ALLEGEDLY STEALING SECURITY DEVICE FROM BALLOT TABULATION CENTER

Officials said the tabulation halfway theft required that the predetermination instrumentality beryllium reprogrammed, costing taxpayers astir $20,000. 

Ringfield besides was arrested successful September 2023 aft allegedly stealing $1,800 from a registry during the people of his displacement arsenic a market store cashier successful Phoenix, according to different probable origin connection obtained by Fox News Digital. That papers besides lists a anterior apprehension for disorderly behaviour and fighting. 

The September 2023 apprehension resulted successful Ringfield entering a felony diversion program. 

At a property league connected Tuesday, Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates admitted that Ringfield had been successful a felony diversion program, but said that accusation did not travel up during a transgression inheritance cheque conducted earlier helium was hired arsenic a impermanent predetermination worker. He vowed that the incidental would not "have immoderate interaction whatsoever connected the primary," which is scheduled for July 30.
 

Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates holds up a achromatic information cardinal arsenic an illustration of 1 stolen from the tabulation center. (KSAZ)

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At Tuesday's property conference, Maricopa County Sheriff Russ Skinner was asked if authorities had a crushed to judge the theft from the ballot tabulation halfway was "politically motivated." He said helium could not speculate astatine this time, explaining that investigators "are inactive combing done a batch of integer grounds that were taken astatine the country and going done items that were taken successful the hunt warrant." 

"We don’t person immoderate denotation astatine this point, but we’re not ruling it out. And we’re going to permission nary chromatic unturned," helium said.