PROBING

LAPD Hunts for Leaker Who Exposed Council Staffer’s Call to Cops

The staffer’s call for an overnight patrol for his broken-down Lexus made its way to Fox News.

The LAPD is on the hunt for whoever leaked details of a call made to police by an aide to prominent anti-police city councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez. The staffer requested an overnight patrol last week for their broken-down Lexus—but a screenshot of the city’s dispatch system, which gives cops information about current incidents—somehow made its way to Instagram and to a breathless Fox News article. LAPD Capt. Kelly Muniz said such incident logs often contain sensitive information about victims of crime or ongoing investigations, and the department is hunting the source of the leak. The screenshot also contained an error: it said the white Lexus belonged to a city council member when it actually belonged to the staffer, according to Soto-Martinez’s office. “Councilmember Soto-Martinez is very upset as this does not reflect the values of transparency, responsible governance, and being accountable to the community that elected him,” his spokesperson Nick Barnes-Batista said.