Ex-Murrieta Cop Arrested on Suspicion of Stalking

UPDATE:

Stalking Arrest of Ex-Murrieta Officer Was Delayed by Hospital Stay

ORIGINAL POST:

An ex-Murrieta police officer was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of stalking.

Chad Michael Bennett, 39, was taken into Murrieta police custody at 11:50 a.m. at Loma Linda University Medical Center, jail records show.

Bennett was booked into Robert Presley Detention Center in Riverside, where he was being held in lieu of $250,000 bail. Sheriff's jail records indicate he is suspected of committing the stalking while out on bail for a March domestic violence arrest and allegation.

Bennett was terminated from the Murrieta Police Department in February after seven years as an officer.

In April, he sent an email to city and police officials, in which he criticized senior management and alleged he was unfairly terminated.

Bennett alleges that when he was placed on administrative leave following his May 2012 arrest on a domestic violence allegation, he received little to no communication from the department. He was terminated eight months later.

Murrieta police could not immediately be reached late Wednesday for comment regarding Bennett's arrest, so it was unclear what led to his arrest on hospital grounds.

The ex-cop's girlfriend or prior girlfriend reportedly worked at Loma Linda University Medical Center-Murrieta at one time.