San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office solves mystery over Oath Keeper account

In October, allegations that Bolanos was affiliated with the Oath Keepers, a national right-wing militia group, were first made online after his email was discovered in a leaked database published and stored by the anti-secrecy organization Distribution Denial of Secrets.

At the time, Bolanos denied being a member of the organization and asserted that someone else must have registered him, though he was unsure of who would have done so. Bolanos said a news organization discovered that a third party likely registered him with the organization and he immediately turned that information over to the DA’s office.

Additional information was also shared with the office from the San Mateo County Counsel’s Office, Bill Massey, chief investigator with the DA’s office, said. The department did not go through the leaked database but Massey said they did reach out to the Oath Keepers, which was unresponsive.

What their investigation did find was that a Belmont resident registered Bolanos and DeSmidt with the organization in 2017. The Belmont Police Department was also made aware of the incident back in 2017, but declined to pursue the case at the time because they were familiar with the individual’s behavior, Massey said.

“Without going into detail, he’s a very outspoken individual. He has some views that may not be mainstream so he’s known in the city of Belmont,” Massey said about the person who created the accounts for the officials.

When questioned, Massey said the individual confessed to registering the public officials with the organization with the intent of reminding them of their oath to the U.S. Constitution. Massey said they verified the individual was responsible for the accounts by reviewing packages from the Oath Keepers which were addressed to Bolanos and DeSmidt but sent to the Belmont resident’s home.

Massey said the DA’s office was investigating the issue of impersonation and identity theft of Bolanos given that the Sheriff’s Office couldn’t investigate a case in which the sheriff is the victim. Under Penal Code 528.5, the individual could have been charged with a misdemeanor for impersonating an individual online without permission with the intent of harming, intimidating, threatening or defrauding another person.

But the DA’s office opted to not file charges because they could not verify that the individual’s actions were done maliciously. Additionally, the investigation fell outside a one-year statute of limitation embedded in the penal code because the Belmont Police Department was aware of the issue around 2017, triggering the statute countdown.

Bolanos — appointed in 2016, elected in 2018 and now running for reelection — said he also routinely receives outlandish emails and communications from people which he said he’s learned to ignore.

Now vindicated, Bolanos said he’s thankful the DA’s office investigated the case and hopes the public will be less inclined to believe such allegations in the future.

“I’m glad the District Attorney’s Office investigated it and determined that there was absolutely no merit to me being involved with that organization,” Bolanos said. “Hopefully people learn from this and recognize that just because somebody says something and tweets something it may not be true. People should do some critical thinking before they assume something.”

sierra@smdailyjournal.com

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