Precinct 2 fires former captain who was indicted alongside Barrientes Vela

Marc Garcia terminated less than three weeks after being placed on administrative leave

Marc Garcia is taken to see a judge to be magistrated on January 23, 2020. (Joshua Saunders, KSAT)

SAN ANTONIO – Michelle Barrientes Vela’s former captain was fired from the Bexar County Precinct 2 Constable’s Office Wednesday, weeks after he was indicted along with the former constable on felony and misdemeanor charges.

Marc Garcia was terminated following a 10-day administrative leave, a Precinct 2 spokesman said.

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Garcia had been placed on leave Jan. 24, a day after the former captain was indicted and taken into custody, the spokesman confirmed earlier this month.

WATCH: Ex-Constable Michelle Barrientes Vela faces judge after turning self in on felony charges

Garcia faces a felony charge of aggravated perjury and three misdemeanor charges of official oppression.

Prosecutors have accused Garcia, who served as a member of Barrientes Vela’s administration, of making up false statements while under oath in order to get a warrant to arrest Leonicio Moreno in April.

Moreno, who filed to run for Precinct 2 constable in the 2020 election, was later taken into custody on that warrant and charged with aggravated perjury.

Prosecutors dismissed the case against Moreno in hours, claiming they were not comfortable moving forward with it.

WATCH: Precinct 2 deputies delayed booking of constable’s political opponent

The indictment of Garcia also accuses him of subjecting Moreno, who was a fellow Precinct 2 deputy, to mistreatment in the workplace and directing others to harass, retaliate and discriminate against Moreno.

A Defenders investigation in June showed that Precinct 2 deputies delayed booking Moreno for nearly a half-hour, until members of the media were in place.

When questioned by the Rangers, the deputies involved in the booking of Moreno said they were instructed by supervisors to delay booking him.

Garcia declined to talk about the criminal case against him when released from custody Jan. 23.

Garcia had worked as a peace officer since 2008, according to Texas Commission on Law Enforcement records.

Former Bexar County Precinct 2 constable Michelle Barrientes Vela

He and Barrientes Vela are scheduled to make a court appearance Feb. 26.

The Precinct 2 spokesman confirmed that Jeremy Miner, the only other employee named in the Texas Rangers search warrant who remains with Precinct 2, is on full duty status assigned to the agency’s civil section.


About the Authors

Emmy-award winning reporter Dillon Collier joined KSAT Investigates in September 2016. Dillon's investigative stories air weeknights on the Nightbeat and on the Six O'Clock News. Dillon is a two-time Houston Press Club Journalist of the Year and a Texas Associated Press Broadcasters Reporter of the Year.

Joshua Saunders is an Emmy-nominated photographer/editor who has worked in the San Antonio market for the past 20 years. Joshua works in the Defenders unit, covering crime and corruption throughout the city.

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