SUN Staff Report
8/6/09
The Española firefighter arrested July 25 for allegedly holding two men at gunpoint also faces a second charge for violating his probation.
Cesar Vargas, 44, of Española, had been charged July 27 in Rio Arriba County Magistrate Court with one felony count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The second charge was filed later the same day, just before he was released from the Española Jail on a $3,000 bond, according to court documents.
He resigned his firefighter position July 28.
Both charges stem from an incident the night of July 25 in which Vargas, moonlighting as a security guard at Milagro Mobile Home Park, allegedly argued with two men who were speeding and flashing emergency lights inside the park, then held them at gunpoint until police arrived.
The two men, Jose G. Bulow Jr., 18, of Santa Cruz, and Isidro Rios, 30, of Roswell, were also arrested on criminal charges — Bulow for driving while intoxicated and Rios for cocaine possession. However, Vargas is not authorized to detain anyone, with or without a weapon, Española Police Sgt. Christian Lopez said.
Vargas had been sentenced to one year of probation Dec. 2, 2008, after pleading no contest to one misdemeanor count of resisting or evading an officer. Rio Arriba County Magistrate Court Judge Joe Madrid at the time dismissed a second charge of negligent use of a deadly weapon and suspended a one-year jail sentence and $1,000 fine for Vargas.
Those two charges stemmed from an October 2008 incident in which Española Police wrestled a pistol away from Vargas after he made suicidal threats.
The terms of Vargas’ probation required him to seek therapy, according to documents. His psychologist, Lloyd Vigil, had sent the court several letters indicating Vargas continued to receive treatment as recently as June. The city had suspended Vargas with pay following the December incident.
In February, Vigil wrote that Vargas was by then mentally fit to resume his duties at the Española Fire Department, and the city reinstated him in March. He resigned from the city two days after this latest incident.
Vargas denied the probation-related charge at a July 27 arraignment, but has did not file a plea on the assault charge, according to court documents. He declined to comment. A hearing will be scheduled to determine if Vargas violated his probation.