Officer may have harassed co-worker

SANTA FE (KRQE) - A former Santa Fe police officer accused of using his police powers to harass women and bully citizens apparently subjected at least one female co-worker to similar treatment.

And while Sgt. Michael Eiskant’s boss told News 13 in January he didn’t know about the officer’s history, he admitted this week to investigating the co-worker’s harassment claim two years ago while working for the city in a different capacity.

During more than a decade with the Santa Fe Police Department, Eiskant racked up a long list of complaints from the public. In January, News 13 detailed those complaints from citizens, who called the sergeant “volatile,” “bullying” and “abusive.”

But several complaints also claimed that Eiskant – who retired three weeks after News 13’s January story aired – harassed women.

“He can make your life miserable,” said one woman who briefly dated Eiskant in 2002 and later moved away from Santa Fe because of continuing harassment. “He’ll terrorize your family.”

Asked in January if he thought Eiskant had a problem with women, Santa Fe Police Chief Raymond Rael said, “Quite honestly, I don’t know enough about the situation to be able to answer that.”

However, after the story ran in January, News 13 tracked down or was contacted by half a dozen women who never filed formal complaints, but all said Eiskant used his law enforcement authority to harass them.

Now News 13 has discovered a formal complaint filed by a fellow Santa Fe officer two years ago. The female officer said Eiskant followed her and another female officer while they were on patrol, according to the complaint. The second female officer said Eiskant acted like “a creeper” and was “stalking” the first female officer, the complaint states.

At the time, that complaint landed on the desk of the City of Santa Fe’s then-Equal Employment Opportunity Commission investigator – Raymond Rael, the current chief.

“He was keeping a very close eye on one particular officer, which made the officer uncomfortable,” Rael told News 13 on Wednesday.

In the end, Rael determined it was not an EEOC matter.

“It was handled according to the policies and procedures,” Rael said Wednesday. “We gave the appropriate advice. We evaluated it appropriately. No I have no regrets.”

Rael – who took over as chief in March 2011 – still maintains he didn’t know about Eiskant’s history when the most recent complaint involving a woman came in late last year. A New Mexico State Police officer complained that Eiskant used a restricted law enforcement-only database to obtain details about his wife, according to the complaint.

That accusation got the attention of both the police department and the attorney general’s office, who are both investigating the incident.

And even though Eiskant retired a month ago, that incident may not simply go away.

“If there’s sufficient evidence to determine there was misconduct or violations of our policy, the matter will be referred to the law enforcement academy for review and possible action with reference to his certification,” Rael said.

Eiskant refused to talk to us in January and did not return a phone message left this week.

If his certification is revoked, Eiskant would not be able to get a job with any law enforcement agency. Rael declined to say when the department’s internal affairs investigation would be completed.

And don’t forget about the attorney general’s investigation. Eiskant could face criminal charges if he’s indicted for that, though there’s no word on when the AG might present its findings to a grand jury.