Former Texas police arrested for trying to prove conspiracy theory at polls

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HOUSTON – A former Houston police captain was arrested after allegedly running a man off the road and threatening him at gunpoint, prosecutors say was part of an elaborate attempt to find evidence of ‘a false conspiracy theory about widespread voter fraud in Harris County

Mark Aguirre was working on behalf of a powerful group of Republican megadonors to investigate unsubstantiated allegations of widespread voter fraud when, in October, he allegedly threw a gun at a man described by the district attorney’s office. Harris County as an “innocent and ordinary” air-conditioning repairman.

Aguirre was arrested Tuesday, according to Harris County District Attorney.

Prosecutors say Aguirre’s election fraud allegations were unfounded and the group paid him $ 266,400 Liberty Center for God and Country, whose CEO is prominent Texas right-wing activist Steven Hotze.

Hotze was part of a group of Republicans who unsuccessfully demanded that about 127,000 ballots be removed from Harris County this year. He was also one of the Republicans who tried – and failed – to prevent Gov. Greg Abbott from extending early voting during the coronavirus pandemic, a lawsuit for which Aguirre had filed an affidavit, claiming he was involved in an investigation. on a fraudulent ballot scheme ”in Harris County.

Jared Woodfill, a spokesman and lawyer for Hotze, confirmed that the Liberty Center hired a company led by Aguirre to investigate election fraud before the 2020 election. The company hired approximately 20 private investigators to work on fraudulent voting claims in Harris County and elsewhere in Texas. Woodfill said he was aware of Aguirre’s arrest, but that he had not yet heard the side of Aguirre’s story.

“[Hotze] he did not conduct or direct any of the investigations, “Woodfill said, noting that Hotze sent advice and information to the research team to decide how to follow up.” [Liberty Center] employed the investigation team that examined the allegations. “

Hotze is an active GOP donor and is one of the most prolific cultural warriors on the right. He is a fierce opponent of same-sex marriage and was a key figure in the failed push for the 2017 “bathroom bill” in the Texas legislature. This summer, he left an infamous voice message to Abbott’s chief of staff telling him to shoot and kill people protesting George Floyd’s death in custody.

President Donald Trump, along with the Texas Republican Party and some key Texas officials, have so far been pushing for unproven claims of widespread election fraud both before and after President-elect Joe Biden won the presidential election. Trump recently joined the failed lawsuit by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to challenge the 2020 election results in four key battlefield states.

While working on behalf of Hotze’s group, which was trying to find evidence of Republican Party election fraud allegations, Aguirre supervised the air conditioning technician for four days with the help of at least two unidentified people before the October 19th. He later told authorities he believed the technician was behind a huge election fraud plan in the Houston area, according to a sworn statement from the Houston police officer who responded to the incident. Aguirre told police he believed the technician was carrying fake ballots in his vehicle and had up to 750,000.

“There were no ballots in the truck,” according to a press release from a Harris County District Attorney. “It was filled with air conditioning parts and tools.”

According to the Houston Chronicle, Aguirre was fired from his position as Houston police captain in 2003 after a controversial raid on a Houston Kmart parking lot.

After the October discussion with the technician, Aguirre also told authorities that he and other unidentified suspects had set up a “command post” at a Marriott hotel in Pearland for days before the incident. According to the Houston police report, he refused to identify the other people he was working with.

Aguirre went black An SUV in the back of the technician’s truck to get the man to stop and get out, according to a court document describing the probable cause of the assault charge aggravated with a deadly weapon. He aimed a pistol at the technician and forced him to the ground, according to the affidavit. One of the other people with whom Aguirre allegedly stole the technician’s vehicle after searching it; later, police found the abandoned truck a few blocks away.

A few days before Aguirre allegedly assaulted the man, he called Lieutenant Wayne Rubio at the Texas Attorney General’s office to ask for help with the investigation. Rubio declined and reported the call. Days later, he received another call from Aguirre, who was disgusted that police did not intervene based on his unsubstantiated allegations, according to the affidavit, which referred to a phone call and an email from Rubio informing authorities of the call. Aguirre allegedly told Rubio he had been in a car accident with “a suspect in election fraud.”

“We’re lucky no one died,” Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said in a statement. “His alleged investigation was delayed from the start: he first alleged a crime and then tried to prove it happened.”

Aguirre was arrested Tuesday by Houston police and charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, a second-degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison.