Immigration arrest lawsuit dismissed against Mesa County deputy

By Heather Willard | Fox 31

DENVER (KDVR) — A lawsuit filed against a Mesa County Sheriff’s Office deputy who may have shared information with federal agents that led to a 19-year-old Utah student’s arrest has been dropped.

The case was filed by the Colorado Attorney General’s Office after Mesa County Deputy Andrew Zwinck allegedly shared details of a traffic stop in a group message that included members of Homeland Security Investigations, leading to the detention of Caroline Dias-Goncalves on June 5. Previous reporting: Mesa County Sheriff’s Office investigation finds ‘disturbing’ messages in drug chat

Dias-Goncalves, 19, has no criminal record and was attending the University of Utah on a merit scholarship. In Colorado, local and state law enforcement and peace officers are prevented from aiding federal law enforcement officers with civil immigration efforts, which is what Dias-Goncalves’ arrest would fall under.

“Based on our findings, the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office should not have had any role in the chain of events leading to Miss Dias-Goncalves’s detention, and I regret that this occurred,” Mesa County Sheriff Todd Rowell shared in July. “I apologize to Miss Dias-Goncalves.”

Court records show that on Thursday, Aug. 28, a joint stipulation of dismissal without prejudice was filed in the case. The court record says that on Aug. 22, Zwinck filed a declaration that said he is resigning from the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office as of Tuesday, Sept. 2.

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