A Greeley police sergeant is no longer with the department after an officer filed a harassment complaint against him earlier this year.

Zachary St. Aubyn’s employment with the ministry ended on June 30. St. Aubyn, who worked in professional standards and as a public information officer, was the subject of a harassment complaint by an officer he supervised.

The complaint, filed with a police commander on March 31, involved allegations of criminal harassment, unwelcome sexual touching and blackmail, according to records obtained by the Greeley Tribune.

The department forwarded the complaint to the Weld District Attorney’s Office, which launched an investigation to determine whether criminal charges should be laid. An investigator from the district attorney’s office filed an arrest warrant for criminal harassment and official misconduct on May 21.

On June 11, Weld County District Attorney Michael Rourke decided not to press charges. The files obtained by the Tribune did not indicate why the case had not been closed.

The Greeley Police Department’s internal investigation, which is being conducted by an independent firm to ensure transparency, is ongoing.

Management of the Greeley Police Department provided statements to the District Attorney’s Office investigator regarding St. Aubyn’s relationship with the victim in the complaint, who will not be named due to Tribune’s policy of not being named. not name victims of sexual misconduct. Before St. Aubyn supervised the victim, his supervisor at the time noticed that St. Aubyn frequented his office.

“He spent a lot of time with her and once it was determined that he would take on the AI ​​position on my rotation to patrol, the frequency and duration per visit seemed to increase,” the former wrote. supervisor in a statement. “As the time approached the 2020 shift change, around Christmas time, I continued to notice Sgt. The constant presence of Saint-Aubyn.

Although the victim initially insisted that all was well, her interview with the investigator details the physical, mental and emotional struggles resulting from the actions of St. Aubyn that she alleged to the public prosecutor’s office.

The issues date back to around June 2020, when the victim said St. Aubyn looked down at her shirt, sat inappropriately near her and commented on her physical appearance. When tasked with monitoring social media for the protests that summer, St. Aubyn walked in despite his day off and forced the victim against the wall to try and kiss him, the victim told the ‘investigator.

The victim had hoped to move on, but he took her to his office the next day and poured out his heart in her, she said. She made it clear that she did not share the feelings he had for her, according to her interview.

In August, the victim agreed to date St. Aubyn for her birthday, in the hopes that at least one of her friends from the district attorney would join them. Instead, it was just the two of them, she said. After stopping at a country bar on the way home, St. Aubyn touched the victim’s breasts and attempted to kiss her, the victim told the investigator.

Although the victim continued to reject St. Aubyn’s advances, he continued to pursue her, she said. This included not allowing her to allocate part of her time to pick up her children from school. He also reminded her that her father, John Gates, was the mayor of Greeley and that her family had a lot of money, the victim told the investigator.

With these factors, she started to feel “terrified”, unsure if he would make up a story to get her fired.

The victim also recounted a time when she let St. Aubyn, who was working on her nutrition certification to become an Atlas Nutrition coach, create a nutrition plan for her. He wanted “recording photos,” according to the victim, even asking her to send a photo of her bending over while she was wearing only a sports bra and thong.

Numerous incidents were said to have taken place in the department’s gymnasium, where St. Aubyn and the victim trained, the victim said. She said he would grab her and show her how to do different workouts and change her schedule to be at the gym with her.

The victim said she had become so stressed that she had been hospitalized several times over the past year. Once when his mother had to take him to the hospital, St. Aubyn kept texting and calling, saying he needed to know what was going on. The victim’s mother corroborated this incident.

During an episode of illness, St. Aubyn texted the victim a text saying, “Of course, if you are away all week, you will have to register me in the North Channel.”

In November, the victim underwent private elective surgery. When she asked for leave, he asked for pictures of her breasts to take time off, according to the victim. The victim said he admitted “it is blackmail”, according to the files.

In another incident, the victim said St. Aubyn got a tattoo for her, a tattoo that matched the theme of the tattoos she had. After that, she went with another officer for coffee. They took a car that did not have GPS tracking, but St. Aubyn knew where they were going and the route they were taking, the victim said. He did not respond if he was tracking GPS data on his phone, she added.

During a wellness check with the department’s psychologist, the victim explained that she was having issues with her boss and told the psychologist that he would stand outside the door listening. When the psychologist opened the door, he was standing there listening, the victim said.

St. Aubyn also wrote a love letter to the victim, she told the investigator. Others in the service verified that it was St. Aubyn’s handwriting on the letter.

“Falling in love with you was the easiest thing I’ve ever done, you really changed my life.” Although my heart is never full without you, I am grateful for every minute I have spent with you. I had my tattoo to always remember the happiness you gave me, ”the letter says. “I don’t know exactly how you feel about me, but that’s okay. “

Other officers raised concerns with the investigator about how St. Aubyn and the victim were still around each other. Chief Mark Jones said he was starting to worry about their relationship, asking a Deputy Chief with a personal relationship with St. Aubyn and the victim to discuss it with the victim.

When she requested a different position within the department to move away from St. Aubyn, Jones asked the victim to clarify her feelings, and she said St. Aubyn made things uncomfortable for her.

“In general, I took her explanation because he had become too friendly with her for a professional sergeant / officer relationship especially since she got married. I was obviously very concerned about this and asked him if there was more to his interactions with Sgt. St. Aubyn that she had shared it with me, ”Jones wrote in a statement. “She said there was no …”

The victim’s new job and schedule helped her feel free from St. Aubyn’s grip, until he changed her schedule.

“I’m finally out of here, I’m finally out of his umbrella and now he’s changing his entire schedule to be with me again,” she said during her interview with the investigator.

Around the time the victim filed her complaint, a detective arranged for training on the updated body cameras. The sergeants could view officers’ body cameras from a distance, and the victim was concerned that St. Aubyn would do this to him.

St. Aubyn provided information about her interactions with the victim to the investigator through Fort Collins lawyer Rachel Michael. He countered that their professional relationship had turned into a flirtatious one with the victim commenting on St. Aubyn’s body. He said the victim kissed him in June 2020, triggering many consensual physical entanglements and flirtatious exchanges until October 2020.

He also said the victim told her husband that St. Aubyn was gay, to allow them to interact without asking questions. He sent photos of various gifts she sent him including personalized shoes, weightlifting belt, mug and more. The victim told the investigator that St. Aubyn continued to buy her gifts after telling her to stop, including an $ 800 pair of shoes.

St. Aubyn said he received unsolicited topless photos of the victim via text message. Their relationship organically reverted to a purely professional relationship in January, according to St. Aubyn. He provided his personal cell phone records from January 2020 to March 2021.

St. Aubyn could not explain the victim’s motives for filing a complaint, but maintained the relationship was consensual and appropriate.

An officer asked the victim if she would return to her post after her former supervisor returned to her post. She said she couldn’t because “there are too many memories in this office,” the officer later told the investigator.